Latino Voices
Latino Voices
Spanish Is Fading Across Generations. These Latino Parents Are Working to Keep It Alive
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.
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Grassroots Effort Grows Into Queer-Led Community Hub in Gage Park
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
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.
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Chicago State University Gears Up for First-Ever Football Game
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.
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Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, May 7, 2022 - Full Show
A bombshell Supreme Court leak signals an overturn of Roe v. Wade. What it could mean for Illinois. Plus, meet two City College valedictorians. And a preview of an upcoming lunar eclipse.
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How a Roe Reversal Could Impact Illinois Latinos
In Illinois, Gov. J. B. Pritzker says no matter how the Supreme Court eventually rules, abortion is still safe and legal in the state. But that’s not the case everywhere in the Midwest.
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City College Valedictorians Reflect on 2020-2022 Experience
Seventeen hundred students from the City Colleges of Chicago walked across the stage at the Wintrust Arena in the first in-person commencement ceremony for the colleges since the pandemic began.
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Love Purse Carries Necessities, Inspiration to Women in Need
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated housing insecurity, substance abuse, human trafficking, and domestic violence, often leaving women struggling with those issues with virtually no resources to move forward. But the pandemic also sparked an idea for local woman Maria Castro. She found a way to get everyday necessities — plus a touch of inspiration — to women in need.
Read more >Black Voices
Drastic Drop in Life Expectancy for Black Chicagoans Exposes Inequities in Health Care
For the first time in decades, life expectancy for Black Chicagoans fell below 70 years old. In 2020, the gap in life expectancy between Black and White residents was 10 years, an increase from 8.8 years in 2017. Overall, life expectancy in Chicago dropped almost two years from 2019 to 2020.
Read more >Black Voices
TV Series Set in Woodlawn Explores Police, Community Relations
A new television series shot on Chicago’s South Side is airing now on AMC. “61st Street” is set in Woodlawn and explores the relationship between community, police and the courts.
Read more >Black Voices
Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, April 23, 2022 - Full Show
Neutralizing environmental racism in a crossover edition of Voices, on this Earth Day weekend. Diagnosing autism. A story of freedom told through opera. And the city’s oldest Black camera club.
Read more >Black Voices
Early Intervention Key to Best Outcomes for Children with Autism, Local Advocates Say
Autism affects about one in 44 children, and while therapists say early intervention is key to treating it effectively, Black children are five times more likely to be misdiagnosed or diagnosed later in life.
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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
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
Report Examines What Some South Side Residents Think About Reparations
A recent report from the Chicago Urban League and the South Side Community Reparations Coalition focuses on 10 neighborhoods: Douglas, Englewood, Fuller Park, Grand Boulevard, Greater Grand Crossing, Oakland, South Shore, Washington Park, West Englewood and Woodlawn.
Read more >Latino Voices
Grassroots Effort Grows Into Queer-Led Community Hub in Gage Park
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
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
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
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.
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