The stories that can be told on a stage are limited only by the storyteller’s imagination. But just who gets to write those stories and bring them to life on Chicago’s stages is too often limited to a privileged few.
The Last Word
Community activist Jitu Brown says that we are still seeing the reverberations of the decision to close 50 Chicago schools in 2013.
The acting career of Raspy Rivera was derailed by an injury in 2020. But she says that injury wound up being a life-changing gift.
A Chicago spoken word artist is celebrating Black men and women with a collection of poems praising and acknowledging their accomplishments. Harold Green’s “Black Roses and Black Oak” are odes to celebrities, leaders and changemakers.
Highlighting African innovation is the goal of the Field Museum’s new assistant curator of African anthropology, Foreman Bandama.
While many companies struggled during the pandemic, Chicago French Press saw sales skyrocket. The coffee brand can now be found on Amazon and in several stores, including Chicago-area Targets, which started selling the products in February.
An exhibit celebrating Black creativity is open from now until April 17 at the Museum of Science and Industry.
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.
Like Rosie the Riveter, ironworker Jennifer Ortiz wants women to know they can do it. Here, she gives La Ultima Palabra on how the spark that ignited her career in the trades can work for other women, too.
As part of our La Última Palabra series, Lou Sandoval, CEO of Supply Hive, says it’s time for Latinos to look to the tech industry for entrepreneurial inspiration.
Tech start-ups often rely on investors to get their business up and running, but tech entrepreneurs of color often don’t get the same amount of funding as their white counterparts. That unequal playing field is what led to the creation of TechRise, a Chicago initiative to support and fund Black and Latino-owned tech companies.
As we celebrate the holidays, many people in need come to rely on local food banks. One food pantry in West Englewood has been around for more than 20 years. It was started by Samella McKenzie who passed away last year. One of her final wishes was for her 10 children to continue her work and serve people.
In Chicago, predominantly Latino communities often bear the environmental burden of heavy industry, and residents of those communities say they have a hard time making their concerns heard.
Alicia Ponce is an architect and one of the founding members of Arquitina, a professional leadership and licensure initiative that supports Latinas in architecture and encourages Latinas to join the industry.
The Illinois Nature Conservancy’s community outreach team gives us “The Last Word” on how bringing diverse perspectives to conservationism - and truly listening to them - can bring about a natural change.
Hinsdale Central High School senior Alexandra Collins gives us La Ultima Palabra on the emotion she says stops many of us from creating change in our communities – and how you can stop it from stopping you.
