Here is a look at Juneteenth, the oldest known U.S. celebration of the end of slavery. On June 19, 1865, over two and a half years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, enslaved African Americans in Texas were told they were free.

The projected budget gap facing the county next year is fueled by the impact of litigation related to Safe Roads Amendment, growing payroll and pension liabilities, increasing employee benefit costs and Medicaid enrollment declines due to federal policy changes, according to a budget forecast presentation.

The former alderperson and current Cook County Board of Review commissioner kicked off his campaign during a lunch event on Chicago’s Southwest Side Tuesday at which he pledged to tackle the city’s fiscal and public safety issues.

Approximately 7,000 unpermitted sweepstakes machines operate in all kinds of businesses across the city — including in bars, restaurants, gas stations, laundromats and convenience stores — but are concentrated on the South and West sides.

The program, launched in the north suburb in 2021, is the first and only one of its kind in the U.S., allotting $20 million to Black residents — their direct descendants — who lived in the city between 1919 and 1969 and suffered housing discrimination because of city ordinances, policies or practices.

Marcel Brown's lawsuit was resolved with the largest payment Chicago taxpayers have ever made to compensate someone wrongfully convicted based on evidence developed by Chicago police, according to a WTTW News analysis.

President Donald Trump signed a $70 billion Republican-backed funding bill for immigration enforcement last week. Democrats have raised concerns that the long-term funding takes away Congress’ oversight power.

Gov. JB Pritzker signed the eighth budget of his tenure on Tuesday as he and Illinois Democrats gear up for an election-year battle centered around affordability.

A federal lawsuit filed last week seeks to block an Illinois law allowing doctors to help terminally ill patients end their own lives ahead of its Sept. 12 effective date.

The Ocean Observatories Initiative is a network of more than 900 ocean sensors built at a cost of $386 million. Over the last decade it has tracked ocean circulation, marine ecosystems, climate change and extreme weather.

The tentative agreement to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz would be good news for the global economy. But even as the price of oil dropped Monday, many questions remain.

Eligible pharmacies in rural and medically underserved communities will receive over $56,000 on Friday, aimed at keeping doors open and expanding services.

The new law will close a “loophole” that contributed to children, teens and young adults ingesting misleading or poorly labeled products, Gov. JB Pritzker said.

If Mayor Brandon Johnson and his allies on the Chicago City Council have their way, those bars and restaurants will never get to plug in video poker and slot machines.

David Jones’ federal lawsuit accuses four Chicago police officers, including convicted former Officer David Salgado, of conspiring to frame him in March 2015 for selling drugs in Lawndale.

Advocates argue the legislation will secure legal protections for Illinois children if they are placed in other states. Republican legislators fought the bill, arguing it infringes on other states and might deepen administrative burdens on DCFS.