Stories by Jennifer Cotto

According to the Equal Justice Initiative, 86% of American churches have no significant racial diversity. The Pew Research Center reports that 57% of churchgoers attend a predominantly White congregation.

After worrying for months that they would be kicked out under a new owner, vendors at the shopping center have been given a short extension on their leases.

The change is a nearly 40% decrease that will put twice as many voters in each precinct. The Chicago Board of Elections has created 1,290 precincts with an average of 1,165 voters per precinct. Previously, the city had 2,069 voter precincts with an average of 550 to 750 voters per precinct.

Inspector General Deborah Witzburg conducted the inquiry after Supt. David Brown’s decision to repeatedly cancel officers’ scheduled days off during the historically violent summer months erupted into controversy.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the eight-month delay was not caused by her lack of support for the commission, which will have the final say on policy for the Chicago Police Department.

Zombie or doomed ice is ice that is still attached to thicker areas of ice, but is no longer getting fed by those larger glaciers. Meanwhile the doomed ice is melting from climate change, said study co-author William Colgan, a glaciologist at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.

A second alleged victim who claimed R. Kelly sexually abused her while she was a minor in the 1990s, told jurors Monday that she lied during an investigation into the R&B superstar’s past child pornography allegations to conceal her own involvement with him.

The filing from the department follows a judge’s weekend order indicating that she was inclined to grant the Trump legal team’s request for a special master who would oversee the review of documents taken during the Aug. 8 search of the Mar-a-Lago estate. 

A 5-year-old boy is fighting for his life after being shot in the head Sunday evening, according to the Chicago Police Department.

Thirty-five people were shot, nine of whom died, in weekend shootings across the city of Chicago, including an 18-year-old killed outside a home in Chatham and a 50-year-old killed inside a Humboldt Park restaurant.

The emergency waiver was granted Saturday for Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin, EPA Administrator Michael Regan said. In a letter to state officials, Regan said the agency determined the waiver is necessary “to minimize or prevent disruption of an adequate supply of gasoline to consumers.”

The exhibit highlights both the benefits and challenges they experienced while traveling as Black women during the Jim Crow era.

According to city data, 60% of Chicagoans live in rental properties, and a June report by real estate platform Domu finds the median rent for one-bedroom apartments in Chicago is up 8% since January. With fierce competition for apartments, the city’s renters – many of whom are Black– are more vulnerable targets for scammers and shady landlords.

According to CPS data, fewer than 4% of CPS teachers are Black men. In a school district where 36% percent of students are Black, that’s a striking imbalance. 

Getting more Black men to the head of the classroom, as teachers. Plus, as the rental market gets squeezed, how to spot a scam. And we'll catch up on the first two weeks of R. Kelly’s Chicago trial. 

Prosecution witness Lisa Van Allen said she rummaged through a gym bag full of recordings of Kelly having sex with women and girls on a rare occasion when Kelly left it unattended at a studio one day in 2000. 

Former U.S. Congressman Luis Gutierrez is coming out of retirement to announce the formation of a new immigration reform organization. His group Our Nation's Future aims to help people with green cards become naturalized citizens by educating immigrants on the path to citizenship and advocating for a modernized immigration system.

Rogelio Lopez, An East Side CPS counselor, gives “Latino Voices” La Ultima Palabra on what he says is the most daunting part of bringing change to your community.

A new student loan debt relief plan will cancel up to $10,000 in federal loans for individuals making less than $125,000 a year. For low-income students who received Pell Grants, they can receive up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness. According to research by Excelencia in Education, 50% of Latinos in higher education receive federal Pell Grants to help pay for college. 

A food pantry in Pilsen has been operating out of a former church for the last two years. The founder is hoping to buy the building but says she is running into obstacles with the Chicago Archdiocese.

What the president’s plan for student loan forgiveness means for borrowers. Plus, reimagining the immigration process. A food pantry fights to expand. And bringing change to communities.

What the just-unsealed affidavit shows about the FBI’s search of Mar-A-Lago. The mayor’s between a rock and a hard place when it comes to the Columbus statue. And student loan debt relief.

Ald. Leslie Hairston (5th Ward) is the fifth member of the Chicago City Council to announce they will not run for re-election next year, joining indicted Ald. Carrie Austin (34th Ward), Ald. James Cappleman (46th Ward), Ald. Michele Smith (43rd Ward) and Ald. George Cardenas (12th Ward.)

It’s the time of year when some of the tallest native plants are in bloom, coming into their own just as most other flora are on the wane. And by tall, we mean they could easily dunk on LeBron James.

Alan Perez, 25, was charged with first-degree murder Friday afternoon stemming from the killing of 36-year-old Jeremy Walker, who died following an altercation at Dearborn and Ohio streets.

The 32-page affidavit — heavily redacted to protect the safety of witnesses and law enforcement officials and “the integrity of the ongoing investigation” — offers the most detailed description to date of the government records being stored at Mar-a-Lago long after Trump left the White House.