“Fire Shut Up In My Bones” is based on a memoir by longtime New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow. Composed by Terence Blanchard, the story explores how Blow works to heal from traumatic incidents of abuse in his childhood. 

The state recently announced a $17 million grant to build the first state-funded network of Freedom Schools in the country. The schools date back to the 1960s when volunteers traveled to Mississippi to teach Black students how to read and write, along with lessons on constitutional rights and African American history.

Tatiana LaBelle, also known as “Tee Tee,” was found in a trash can, beaten to death in the Chatham neighborhood on March 18. Her death was ruled a homicide. One day later, transgender activist Elise Malary was found dead along the lakefront in Evanston, a week after she was reported missing.

“Chicago Tonight” co-host and “Chicago Tonight: Black Voices” host Brandis Friedman moderated the latest edition of our “Chicago Tonight: Black Voices” community conversation series in a discussion focused on the state of voting rights.

A mental health initiative led by young men of color. A film about marijuana criminalization produced by a Chicago cannabis company. And A South Side ER is the backdrop for a book on U.S. health care.

Pandemic inequities and how health care systems contribute to them are the focus of the latest selection in our “Black Voices Book Club” series, “The Emergency: A year of Healing and Heartbreak in a Chicago ER.”

In collaboration with Lurie Children’s Hospital, young researchers with the racial justice organization Communities United conducted a study focused on the mental health and well-being of Black and Brown young men in Chicago. 

A Chicago-based cannabis company is now working to expose harsh sentences for recreational marijuana use as it becomes legal in several states. Cresco helped produce a short film on the sentencing of Michael Thompson, a Michigan man who was given 42 to 60 years in prison for a marijuana-related arrest.

A Black/Latino Voices crossover: what it means to be a refugee. The state’s outgoing top doctor joins us. The Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act heads to the president’s desk. And going green in Englewood.

Dr. Ngozi Ezike’s last day as director of the Illinois Department of Public Health is March 14. In a one-one-one interview, she spoke about her plans for the future and reflected on the last two years of COVID-19 response efforts. 

More than two million people have left Ukraine since the start of Russia’s attack, finding refuge in nearby countries. Nations have opened their borders and hearts to Ukrainians, happily taking them in. It’s a stark difference from 2015, when Europe faced another refugee crisis.

Chicago police officers were more likely to stop and use force against Black Chicagoans than other racial groups, according to a new report from the Office of the Inspector General.

Chicago Police are more likely to stop and use force against Black Chicagoans per a new watchdog report. Plus, the latest on efforts to make reparations. And Alvin Ailey dancers return to the Windy City.

It was at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre where dancers with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater would unknowingly perform for the last time before a nearly two-year hiatus. Fast forward to today, and they’re back on their first national tour.

Zahrah Hill, who’s a plumber, and her mother Renee Wilson-Hill, a turbine generator winder, started their careers through Chicago Women In Trades. As part of our Last Word series, They give us a look into why they entered their industry.

Students protest racial slurs at a suburban high school. How a Chicago journalist uses her own experience to address trauma. Helping students pay for college. And our Black History Month Spotlight.