Stories by Acacia Hernandez

North Park was originally a Swedish community and over the years it’s become more diverse, with a blend of different cultures and backgrounds.

Republican Day at the state fair. We’re live from North Park. A new study says Illinois has the largest per capita Muslim population in the U.S. A new FDA rule impacting millions needing hearing aids.

Researchers found that Muslims in Illinois were the youngest and most diverse faith community in the state and the country. The sample in the study were racially and ethnically diverse. The study also includes specific recommendations for educators, elected officials, Muslim community leaders and more on how they can better meet the needs of Muslim communities. 

Despite a life-altering event, a local retired chorus teacher shares how it hasn’t stopped him from playing the music he loves. 

The regulation creates a new class of hearing aids that don’t require a medical exam, a prescription and other specialty evaluations, the Food and Drug Administration said. That’s expected to increase competition and eventually lower costs. The devices will be sold online or over-the-counter at pharmacies and other retail stores.

Chicago police and fire departments conducted multiple water rescues in a less than 24-hour period on Lake Michigan, with at least two people dead.

In Jessica Mlinaric’s latest book, decipher rhyming riddles and visual clues that lead to over 300 little-known Chicago attractions ranging from architectural oddities to public artworks to nature areas and more.

The woman — now 37 and identified in court only under the pseudonym “Jane” — is one of the main witnesses at the center of the government’s latest case against Kelly. She was allegedly the 14-year-old girl who later appeared in child pornography videos Kelly allegedly produced. 

People are usually infected when water containing the amoeba enters the body through the nose while swimming or diving into lakes and rivers. Other sources have been documented, including tainted tap water in a Houston-area city in 2020.

Rare coins, blues music, barbecued meats and Latin American music usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

The Chicago Department of Public Health announced that the city will receive another 20,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine from the federal stockpile, to be distributed to clinics across the city next week.

The plea bargain also requires Allen Weisselberg to testify truthfully as a prosecution witness when the Trump Organization goes on trial in October on related charges. The company is accused of helping Weisselberg and other executives avoid income taxes by failing to report their full compensation.

The Big Ten announced Thursday it has reached seven-year agreements with Fox, CBS and NBC to share the rights to the conference’s football and basketball games. The deals go into effect in 2023 and eventually will allow the conference’s member universities to share more than $1 billion per year, a person familiar with the terms told The Associated Press.

Democrats hold all of Illinois’ statewide offices and super-majorities in the legislature, and they’re looking to not only keep it that way come November, but to also tighten their stronghold, including by tipping suburban contests, like the DuPage and Kane County boards.

We’re live at the Illinois State Fair and it’s Democrat Day. Plus, opening statements in the R. Kelly trial. Why insulin is so expensive. And earning a bachelor’s degree in a maximum security prison.

Highland Park calls for a ban on semi-automatic weapons. Our politics team weighs in on that story and more.

President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law this week, which among other things, puts a $35 cap on insulin prices. But that will only apply to Medicare recipients, leaving the rest of Americans who depend on the life-saving medication to continue paying huge prices.

While many schools will offer classes for credit to prison inmates, Northwestern University says its the only top 10 school that grants degrees to prisoners. And next spring, students at Stateville Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison in Will County, will be the first to receive their bachelor's degrees from Northwestern while in prison.

The Chicago Welcome Back Center launched Tuesday at Richard J. Daley College and will serve as a resource center for individuals trained internationally in health care fields who are working to receive licensure in the U.S. 

The unanimous advisory opinion issued Monday and signed by Chair William Conlon represents the first time the board has addressed the issues that surround the decision by an incumbent mayor to run for re-election.

Opening statements got underway at the Dirksen Federal Building on Wednesday in R. Kelly’s second federal trial, where he stands accused of multiple child pornography-related charges, as well as conspiracy to obstruct justice and enticing a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity.

The man was pulled from the water early Wednesday morning. More than 30 people have drowned in Lake Michigan so far in 2022.

Platforms like Facebook and Twitter are generally staying the course from the 2020 voting season, which was marred by conspiracies and culminated in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Video app TikTok, which has soared in popularity since the last election cycle, announced Wednesday it is launching an election center.

From Barcelona to Tel Aviv, scientists say they are witnessing exceptional temperature hikes ranging from 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit to 9 degrees Fahrenheit above the norm for this time of year. Water temperatures have regularly exceeded 86 degrees on some days.

Speaking to NBC in the wake of her loss, the third-term congresswoman called Trump “a very grave threat and risk to our republic,” and said defeating him will require “a broad and united front of Republicans, Democrats and independents — and that’s what I intend to be part of.”

President Biden signs his signature piece of legislation. The state’s top doctor on COVID and more. An Afghanistan war interpreter’s fight for citizenship. And the Morton Arboretum turns 100.