Stories by Heather Cherone

Black Chicagoans die more than nine years sooner than other Chicagoans, a gap caused by systemic racism that is only growing, according to a report released this week by the Chicago Department of Public Health.

Springfield movement on a controversial elected school board for Chicago. Plus, a one-on-one with “Game of Thrones” creator George RR Martin. Learning about the trans community, and more.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the law Wednesday at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, where a rare copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by the country’s 16th president is currently on display.

A transgender-led research group is working to create a comprehensive data set that reflects the trans community in Cook County more wholly. “We’re really trying to not just tell stories of trans pain, but also tell stories of trans joy,” said Dylan Felt of Northwestern University.

A notable Northwestern alum is in town for some major recognition. “Game of Thrones” author George RR Martin was awarded an honorary doctorate at Monday’s commencement ceremony. We caught up with Martin to talk about the GOT phenomenon and his time at Northwestern.

A rare inflammatory condition linked to kids with coronavirus infections is more likely to occur in Black, Latino and Asian children than their white counterparts, according to a new study. “This virus does not affect everyone equally,” said pediatrician Dr. Patrick Seed.

In a new exhibit at the Hyde Park Art Center, a Mexican American artist is exploring his personal and professional transformation. We meet the artist to learn more about “The Metamorphosis of Gabriel Villa.”

The Illinois House on Wednesday approved legislation that will turn the current seven-member appointed board — the lone appointed school board in the state — into a 21-member body with elections beginning in 2024. Mayor Lori Lightfoot has strongly opposed the bill, calling it “very ill-constructed.”

“We don’t want to provide a road map” for others who seek to obtain the city’s data, Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th Ward) said.

In the six months since Anjanette Young and Mayor Lori Lightfoot sat down for a face-to-face meeting, little has been done to correct the issues that led to the botched raid at Young’s home in 2019 or address her ongoing lawsuit against the city, her attorney said Wednesday.

Celia Meza has served as the city’s top attorney since December, replacing former Corporation Counsel Mark Flessner, who resigned amid a furor over the mayor’s handling of the revelation that Chicago police officers handcuffed a naked woman during a mistaken raid in February 2019.

As cases tumble and states reopen, the potential final stage in the U.S. campaign to vanquish COVID-19 is turning into a slog, with a worrisome variant gaining a bigger foothold and lotteries and other prizes failing to persuade some Americans to get vaccinated.

Sudsy brews, street art, superheroes and Juneteenth celebrations. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

Five people standing outside on Chicago’s West Side were shot in a violent end to a day that began with a mass shooting on the city’s South Side that left four people dead and four more injured, police said.

The Chicago Loop Alliance’s series of events shutting down a stretch of the city’s iconic street to cars, is scheduled to run for eight Sundays this summer starting July 11, CLA announced Wednesday.

Beginning in September, Maestro Riccardo Muti will lead the orchestra he has not seen since February 2020 in a three-week residency marking the official opening of the 2021-22 season in Orchestra Hall and the return of (hopefully full) live audiences.

Lawmakers couldn’t clinch a deal on a comprehensive energy package before their regular session ended in May, but were called back to Springfield on Tuesday to try again. Instead, the Senate adjourned once again without taking action.

State lawmakers take up unfinished business in Springfield. Reopening guidelines at an area race track. What would a lunar colony look like? And the future of electric scooters.

A bill heading to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk would provide funding for a proposed natural gas pipeline in a village outside Kankakee. Supporters say the pipeline could provide economic growth for the area, but others are concerned about the plan’s environmental impact.

Last year’s electric scooter program, which ran from August to December, saw an increase in the number of available scooters but a decline in overall ridership, according to a Chicago Department of Transportation report.

The Chicago-based global architectural powerhouse designs everything from train stations to high-rises to airports. But it also has its sights set beyond Chicago — and even beyond Earth. We learn about a design for a lunar colony grounded in science fact rather than science fiction.

It’s home to trainers, jockeys and others in the horse racing industry. And during summer weekends, it’s a place for fans to bet on their favorite racehorse. Arlington International Racecourse is officially open for what could be its last season.

Wage theft costs Chicago workers $400 million a year, according to the mayor’s office.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot will introduce a measure Thursday that would ban the sale of alcohol at stores after midnight, dropping her effort to set an earlier cutoff. The mayor called the revised proposal “a reasonable compromise.”

The philanthropist announced $2.7 billion in donations Tuesday to 268 organizations, including a number of Chicago-area institutions. The University of Illinois at Chicago received $40 million, the largest gift from an individual in school history.

Marvin Flanagan and another suspect allegedly fired assault rifles at a Humboldt Park resident during an attempted home invasion late last year, Cook County prosecutors said Tuesday.