Following up on our series, Permanent Punishment, a look at the legal routes to clearing a criminal record. Young Steppenwolf artists remember the tragedy that touched off the Chicago race riots of 1919. And nailing art.

A quinceañera is all about the details. A family-run business in Little Village has been playing a part in the quinceañeras of area girls for years.

The Haitian American Museum of Chicago, in collaboration with the North Lawndale Pop Up Spot and Crossing Borders Music, are hosting an upcoming traveling exhibit kicking off Oct. 16 in North Lawndale.

Applications are now open for a guaranteed income program in Cook County. The Low-rider Festival drives back to town. And trying on quinceañera dresses.

The Paper Prisons Initiative estimates more than 500,000 people are eligible to have their records cleared. But advocates say that’s not happening for many of them. It’s an issue that disproportionately affects Black people, particularly in the Chicago area, says Aisha Edwards, executive director of Cabrini Green Legal Aid.

Through the month of October, a series of events called “Journey Chicago” is taking place at cultural heritage centers across the city and suburbs. 

The guaranteed income pilot program, known as Cook County Promise, began accepting applications this week. Funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, the program will pay 3,250 residents of Cook County $500 a month for two years.

The protests erupted Sept. 17, after the burial of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman who had died in the custody of Iran’s feared morality police. Amini had been detained for an alleged violation of strict Islamic dress codes for women. Since then, protests spread across the country and were met by a fierce crackdown.

Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman on the Supreme Court and its newest justice, said before the term began that she was “ready to work.” She made that clear during arguments in the opening cases.

Gubernatorial candidates sling mud in their first televised debate. No property tax hikes in Mayor Lightfoot’s election year budget. Homeless advocates press Lightfoot for more funding. And the White Sox head into an offseason full of questions.

Friday’s government report showed that hiring fell from 315,000 in August to the weakest monthly gain since April 2021. The unemployment rate fell from 3.7% to 3.5%, matching a half-century low.

Whether you plan to watch the Chicago Marathon from your couch, are excited to join the cheering throng of spectators or just want to steer clear of traffic jams, here's what you need to know.

Black film festival, scarecrows, wine tastings and more fun surprises usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

Live from Hyde Park. Plus, gubernatorial candidates go head-to-head. The final part of our Permanent Punishment series exploring how criminal records are expunged. And a new report finds HIV/AIDS plummeting in Chicago during the pandemic.

Early voting begins in Chicago on Friday, but voters will have fewer opportunities to be informed about the positions of those on the ballot because there are fewer debates. It’s a national trend, though one that’s difficult to measure.