According to Cook County data, 35% of residents speak a language other than English at home, while 14% of those people say they speak English less than “very well.” Meanwhile, migrants continue arriving in Chicago with limited to no English-speaking skills and few resources.
Grace Pai
The Pan-Asian Voter Empowerment Coalition, a coalition of Asian American organizations from across the Chicago area, will come together in Springfield on Tuesday to advocate for legislation to meet the community’s needs.
Advocates for Latino Chicagoans told WTTW News that they believe Lightfoot failed to fulfill promises to ensure those she chose to lead city departments and to serve on city panels represented the city’s racial and ethnic diversity.
Starting this school year, every public elementary school and high school in Illinois must include a unit of instruction on Asian American history. Illinois became the first state to implement the requirement when Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History Act into law last summer.
While University of Chicago officials promptly indicated they’d increase off-campus patrolling following the recent death of a graduate, some members of the Asian community are calling for systemic change instead of increased surveillance or police presence.
Some community leaders want to see Chinatown and the surrounding area included in a single ward as part of the city council’s once-a-decade remap process. Advocates are also calling for Asian American communities in Albany Park, West Ridge, and Uptown to stay together in their respective wards to ensure their voices are heard.
The final map crafted by the Chicago Ward Advisory Redistricting Commission would increase the number of wards where Latinos make up a majority of residents by one to 14, while reducing the number of wards with a majority of Black voters by three to 15 wards.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s picks for key city posts during her first two years in office failed to keep pace with the growing number of Latino Chicagoans, according to an analysis by WTTW News.
The frequency of anti-Asian incidents — from taunts to outright assaults — reported in the United States so far this year seems poised to surpass last year despite months of political and social activism, according to a new report released Thursday.
In the midst of a right-wing attack on creating a more inclusive education in the U.S., Illinois just became the first state to require Asian American history to be taught in public schools.
“Chicago Tonight: Black Voices” host Brandis Friedman and a panel of guests discuss the murder of George Floyd on the anniversary of his death, and where the racial justice movement stands today. Watch it now.
