Stories by WTTW News

Federal pandemic unemployment benefits end, what it means for Chicago’s labor force. Plus, a new law aimed at helping local immigrants. And La Villita’s iconic arch is up for landmark status. 

Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation. Federal pandemic unemployment benefits ended on Labor Day, cutting off weekly payments to more than 300,000 people in the state. 

Should full landmark status be granted, the arch will become the first symbol of Chicago’s Latino community to receive that honor, as well as the first time an architect of Mexican descent has had a structure landmarked here. 

Presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton all gathered at the site where the World Trade Center towers fell two decades ago. 

Nearly 10,000 Afghan evacuees are staying at the base while they undergo medical and security checks before being resettled in the United States. 

The ceremony at ground zero in New York began exactly two decades after the deadliest act of terrorism on U.S. soil started with the first of four hijacked planes crashing into one of the World Trade Center’s twin towers.

An energy bill passes the House. Calls grow to investigate an alderman accused of retaliating against residents. Thousands of CPS students are potentially exposed to COVID-19. And the Chicago Bears kickoff their season Sunday.

Members of the Chicago City Council unanimously endorsed a plan Friday to extend the city’s program that earmarks a portion of city contracts for firms owned by Black, Latino and Asian Chicagoans as well as women for another six years, without expanding its scope.

This 9/11 comes little more than two weeks after a suicide bomber in Kabul killed 13 U.S. service members as the military concluded its withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

CEO Mike Kelly’s announcement reverses the city’s longstanding argument that life rings along the waterfront would encourage people to enter the water and put themselves at risk of injury or death — and make the city liable.

Chicago police Superintendent David Brown on Friday announced that officers serving on the department’s Community Safety Team will be moved into new units centered on gang investigations, homicides, carjackings and narcotics.

The U.S. has halted all U.S.-bound flights of Afghan evacuees from two main bases overseas after discovering a limited measles outbreak among Afghans arriving in the United States, a hitch that American officials warned will have a severe impact on an often-troubled U.S.-run evacuation.

Two decades after the twin towers’ collapse, people are still coming forward to report illnesses that might be related to the attacks. 

In the suit filed late Thursday the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats call the fee caps government overreach.

“No one should ever be denied access to city services because of their political opinion, whom they may have supported in an election,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

Ten years after the 9/11 attacks, Americans were reasonably positive about the state of their rights and liberties. Today, after 20 years, not as much.

An ambitious – and controversial – energy package that aims to move Illinois to 100% clean energy within the next several decades is on the path to becoming law. 

Oak Lawn is a southwest suburb bordering parts of Chicago. Along with surrounding suburbs, it has a strong Muslim community. And its fire and police departments sent members to support New York firefighters after the 9/11 attack. 

Journalist and author Dawn Turner has been writing about race, politics and people her whole career. But in her latest book, she’s turned her pen inward as she reflects on her own life’s path and how it diverged from the lives of the two girls she grew up closest to — her sister Kim, and her best friend Debra.

The latest on new allegations against 45th Ward. Ald. Jim Gardiner. Reflecting on 9/11. A report from Oak Lawn. The return of Pitchfork Music Festival. And what’s in store for the Chicago Bears?

The NFL season officially kicks off Thursday, but the Bears have to wait until Sunday for their prime-time matchup with the Rams. James “Big Cat” Williams, former offensive lineman for the Chicago Bears from 1991 to 2002, offers his take on the season.

The watchdog for the Cook County Circuit Court Clerk has been asked to probe whether one of the office’s employees improperly accessed court records and sent them to Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th Ward), who faces allegations that he has used his office to retaliate against political opponents, WTTW News has learned. 

Saturday marks the 20th anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil. Local experts join us to discuss what we’ve learned about terrorist threats since then — and how safe we are today.

After a one-year hiatus, Chicago’s homegrown music festival returns this weekend with a typically eclectic lineup of new music and some legendary artists. We meet a few performers with local ties as they prepare for a moment in the spotlight.

Government and airline officials gathered Thursday to mark the completion of a $6 billion modernization project to untangle the jumble of runways that for decades made flying into and out of Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport feel like a downtown traffic jam at rush hour. 

She was an unsuspecting radio station intern in 2003 when she pursued what she thought would be a career-making interview with a R&B superstar — R. Kelly. Instead, she had a horrific experience while locked in a darkened room for days, she’s now testified years later.