Latino Voices

Latino Voices

Spanish Is Fading Across Generations. These Latino Parents Are Working to Keep It Alive

(WTTW News) Nationally, the share of Latinos who speak Spanish at home declined from 78% in 2000 to 68% in 2024, according to a Pew Research Center analysis. The decline has been particularly pronounced among U.S.-born Latinos, as English becomes increasingly dominant across generations. Read more >

Latino Voices

Grassroots Effort Grows Into Queer-Led Community Hub in Gage Park

Antonio Santos and Katia Martinez founded the Gage Park Latinx Council. (WTTW News) In a neighborhood where nearly 90% of residents identify as Latino and many families are rooted in Catholic traditions, the queer-led Gage Park Latinx Council has grown into a hub for families. Read more >

Black Voices

Black Voices

Smithsonian Head Lonnie Bunch on Preserving History, Retirement and Trump Administration Threats

FILE - Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Lonnie Bunch speaks at an event, Feb. 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo / Allison Robbert, File) Lonnie Bunch was named secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in 2019. He began his career at the Smithsonian at the National Air and Space Museum in 1978 and took on a new role in 2005 to lead the development of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago State University Gears Up for First-Ever Football Game

The Chicago State University football team at practice. (WTTW News) For Chicago State University, the first game will be about more than football. The university is hoping the new program can help build a new sports identity on Chicago’s South Side. Read more >

Latino Voices

A Shortage of Albuterol is About to Get Worse, Especially in Hospitals

Hospitals are closely watching an ongoing shortage of albuterol, which is used to treat people with breathing problems. (Adobe Stock) Liquid albuterol has been in short supply since last summer. Now, the news of a manufacturing plant shutdown worries some doctors who work with patients with breathing problems such as asthma. Read more >

Latino Voices

Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, March 11, 2023 - Full Show

(WTTW News) Find out why Cook County is named the worst neighbor in the country. What you need to know about an asthma medication shortage. And a Pilsen food pantry finds a new home.  Read more >

Latino Voices

Pilsen Food Pantry Purchases Permanent Home

Pilsen Food Pantry purchased a permanent home at 21st and Ashland. (WTTW News) Since it first opened inside a health clinic in 2018 and moved to a deconsecrated church in 2019, the Pilsen Food Pantry has expanded its offerings and ambition. Read more >

Latino Voices

As Emergency SNAP Benefits End, Community Food Organizations Prepare to Meet Increased Demand

(WTTW News) Households in Illinois receiving SNAP food benefits will see them decrease in March as a pandemic-era policy giving families additional benefits comes to an end. The average person will receive about $90 less in SNAP benefits per month. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago Public Library Foundation Receives $2M Grant for Archiving Black History

(WTTW News) The grant from the Mellon Foundation will allow CPL to digitize and archive materials related to the city’s Black history, including items dating from the 1800s to the present day. Read more >

Black Voices

Common Threads in State Public University Faculty Strikes

(WTTW News) A wave of labor actions swept through Illinois public universities this month, with faculty at Chicago State, Eastern Illinois and Governors State universities on strike at various times throughout April. Read more >

Black Voices

Nearly 70 Years of Housing, Healing and Hope for Reentering Citizens at St. Leonard’s Ministries

(WTTW News) The West Side nonprofit offers workforce development and mental health and substance abuse services, among other supports. Leadership said their recidivism rates are a fraction of the state average. Read more >

Black Voices

‘We Won’t Stand for It’: American Library Association’s Tracie Hall Talks Book Ban Efforts

Tracie Hall, the first Black woman to lead the Chicago-based American Library Association, appeared on “Black Voices” on April 22, 2023. (WTTW News) Tracie Hall, the first Black woman to lead the Chicago-based American Library Association, has been named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023. Read more >

Join WTTW News every weekend for analysis and features on a wide range of topics, including arts and life, entrepreneurship and innovation, and equity and justice across the sectors of our society and in the Black and Latino communities in Chicago. Make the VOICES series your definitive source for real conversation and a platform for different voices and perspectives.

Latino Voices

Black Voices

Latino Voices

Spanish Is Fading Across Generations. These Latino Parents Are Working to Keep It Alive

(WTTW News) Nationally, the share of Latinos who speak Spanish at home declined from 78% in 2000 to 68% in 2024, according to a Pew Research Center analysis. The decline has been particularly pronounced among U.S.-born Latinos, as English becomes increasingly dominant across generations. Read more >

Black Voices

The Late Chicago Teachers Union Powerhouse Karen Lewis Explores Her Life, Leadership in New Memoir

(Matt Masterson / WTTW News) The outspoken chemistry teacher led nearly 25,000 teachers on a historic weeklong strike in 2012, changing the way the union organized and negotiated. She died in 2021 at 67 years old. Read more >

Latino Voices

Grassroots Effort Grows Into Queer-Led Community Hub in Gage Park

Antonio Santos and Katia Martinez founded the Gage Park Latinx Council. (WTTW News) In a neighborhood where nearly 90% of residents identify as Latino and many families are rooted in Catholic traditions, the queer-led Gage Park Latinx Council has grown into a hub for families. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago State University Gears Up for First-Ever Football Game

The Chicago State University football team at practice. (WTTW News) For Chicago State University, the first game will be about more than football. The university is hoping the new program can help build a new sports identity on Chicago’s South Side. Read more >

 

Black Voices

Storm Recovery Continues in Gary, as Thousands Still Without Power

The city of Gary, Ind., is pictured in a file photo. (WTTW News) Tuesday will mark two weeks since a derecho swept through Illinois and northwest Indiana, with winds damaging homes, uprooting trees and knocking out power for hundreds of thousands. Read more >

Latino Voices

New Short Film Showcases Life, Work of Puerto Rican Activist

The case and crew of the short film “Mataron A Pedro” at a screening in Chicago. (Carmona Rivera / National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture) Members of Chicago’s Puerto Rican community recently took park in a special screening of a new short film based on the life of Pedro Albizu Campos.  Read more >