For many Black people, Afro Sheen is a household name. Businessman George Johnson created the products in 1954 on Chicago’s South Side. He pushed through racial barriers to become one of the most successful Black entrepreneurs in the U.S. by the late 1960s.
Photography, film and fabrics are used to write the continent’s expansive story, starting chronologically during the liberation period of the mid-20th century up until today.
“Chicago is the steppin’ capital of the world.” That’s a phrase coined by local DJ Sam Chatman, also known as the Godfather of Steppin’. And though the dance craze’s popularity has spread far and wide, no one can do it quite like the hometown originators.
City Hall narrowly approves a controversial new borrowing deal. And the history behind the Chicago dance style known as steppin’.
Shermann “Dilla” Thomas has a new gig at theDuSable Black History Museum as a brand ambassador and social media chief — an opportunity he’s called a “dream job.” It’s just one of his many projects — from giving bus tours to posting on TikTok about the city’s lesser-known history.
What’s in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s budget plan. An effort to lower Chicago’s default speed limit stalls. And civil rights icon Ida B. Wells is honored on a quarter.
Women’s suffragist, investigative journalist and civil rights leader Ida B. Wells is now immortalized as part of the U.S. Mint’s American Women Quarters Program.
The movie is about Harith Augustus, a 37-year-old barber who was shot and killed by police in South Shore in July 2018. The shooting sparked immediate public outcry and legal fights for full access to police body camera video.
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Asked by reporters how soon he would like the department closed, President Donald Trump responded: “Oh, I’d like it to be closed immediately. The Department of Education is a big con-job.”
A split verdict in the landmark corruption trial of Michael Madigan. And what funding cuts could mean for local early childhood programs.
Backers of Trump’s decision say DEI practices were discriminatory and promoted inequity. But advocates argue social equity initiatives are essential to create a fair and balanced society.
Diversity, equity and inclusion programs are being targeted — a look at the potential impact. And actress Keke Palmer on embracing her natural beauty.
The Chicago-area native recently returned to the city to celebrate natural hair and Black Heritage Month at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center. She’s on a high after starring alongside SZA in the country’s No. 1 comedy flick “One of Them Days.”
For many in Chicago’s transgender community, the order and other policies of the new administration are cause for concern. They say the policy focus on transgender people is a distraction from other national issues.
The White House rescinds its memo freezing federal funding. And a plan to hold companies complicit in slavery to account.
Artist and photographer Tonika Lewis Johnson and sociologist Maria Krysan compiled Chicagoans’ stories in their new book. The goal was to better understand what can happen when people explore often ignored parts of the city.
 

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