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The impact of the Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action in college admissions. Traffic stops targeting Black drivers. And the Festival of Life kicks off in Washington Park.

Some workers in Cook County will find a little more in their paychecks starting this month.

Chicago buckles down for this weekend’s NASCAR race. City residents choke down the world’s worst air quality. The president visits Chicago amid a major week of Supreme Court rulings. And Connor Bedard becomes a Hawk.

The lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois accuses the Chicago Police Department of making more than 1 million traffic stops between 2016 and 2022 based on dubious evidence of minor violations that took direct aim at Black and Latino Chicagoans but spared White Chicagoans.

Organizers said the four-day festival will be a “grand celebration” to bring community together. The event celebrates African and Caribbean art, cuisine, dance and music.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Friday signed House Bill 3882, which will phase out the “Temporary Visitor Driver’s License,” or TVDL, which noncitizens currently use to drive legally in Illinois. The new law takes effect July 1, 2024.

The court ruled 6-3 for designer Lorie Smith despite a Colorado law that bars discrimination based on sexual orientation, race, gender and other characteristics. Smith had argued that the law violates her free speech rights.

The 6-3 decision, with conservative justices in the majority, effectively killed the $400 billion plan, announced by President Joe Biden last year, and left borrowers on the hook for repayments that are expected to resume by late summer.

The national average for regular gasoline dipped to $3.55 a gallon on Thursday, according to AAA. A year ago, a gallon of regular sold for an average of $4.87 a gallon.

A member of Chicago’s famed Second City comedy troupe, Arkin was an immediate success in movies and peaked late in life with his win as best supporting actor for the surprise 2006 hit “Little Miss Sunshine.”

The number of homes searched by Chicago Police officers dropped nearly 90% since 2019, the same year a botched raid left social worker Anjanette Young handcuffed while naked and pleading for help, according to new data.

A bombshell Supreme Court ruling upends affirmative action. We’re live in Grant Park just days before the NASCAR street race begins. And what to know about new laws taking effect soon.

It’s almost go time for NASCAR in Chicago. The 12-turn, 2.2-mile street course will run on Lake Shore Drive, Michigan Avenue and South Columbus Drive. People are feeling all sorts of emotions — from excitement to curiosity to concern.

Andre Castro is making his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut this Saturday in Chicago. He’s used to street racing and skyline views, but stock cars will be a new one for him.

Get ready to pay more for gas and groceries. Illinois rings in the fiscal new year on July 1, which brings with it changes.

The court's conservative majority overturned admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the nation's oldest private and public colleges, respectively.

The judges on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals are being asked to decide whether Illinois’ recently enacted assault weapons ban violates the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms. 

Baseball, fireworks and “Star Wars” usher in the weekend. Here are five things to do in and around Chicago.

The seventh semiannual report from the team led by attorney Maggie Hickey urges police brass and city leaders to “urgently address” staffing shortages, a lack of supervision for officers and poor data collection, analysis and management.

Experts say the drought in the central U.S. is the worst since at least 2012, and in some areas, is drawing comparisons to the 1988 drought that devastated corn, wheat and soybean crops.

According to data from the Illinois EPA, Chicago’s Air Quality Index was at a 185 as of Thursday morning, placing it in the “unhealthy” range. That means older adults, people with heart or lung disease and children and teens should avoid strenuous outdoor activities.

The 17-year-old Bedard is considered a generational talent among NHL scouts, boasting an elite skill set and hockey IQ.

Biden’s whirlwind day in Chicago. The city is set to get a new U.S. attorney. An effort to clear a backlog of police misconduct cases. And the intersection of Chicago’s labor and LGBTQ+ movements.

April Perry, who currently serves as senior counsel overseeing Global Investigations and Fraud and Abuse Prevention at GE HealthCare, has been nominated to become the next U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois after John Lausch stepped down earlier this year.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Ian Happ commissioned an artist to capture the game from a player’s perspective. But the artist, an Englishman, didn’t know much about baseball. So Happ introduced his new friend to his workplace.

Twenty states have passed laws or policies banning gender-affirming care for youth, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Howard Brown said it saw an increase of 5,000 patients last year — 5% of that being out-of-state patients seeking gender-affirming care.