Latino Voices

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 >

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 >

Black Voices

Black Voices

‘Other Washingtons’ Art Installation Aims to Reimagine Who We Choose to Remember

Amanda Williams' new art installation around the George Washington statue in Washington Park features artists, inventors, educators and leaders. (WTTW News) “Other Washingtons” is an art intervention located around the George Washington statue at 51st Street and Martin Luther King Drive that features artists, inventors, educators and other inspirational leaders, all with the last name Washington. Read more >

Black Voices

Take a Look Inside the 1903 Frank Lloyd Wright House a Chicago Nonprofit Is Working to Restore

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Walser House, a Chicago 7 Most Endangered in 2025. (Eric Allix Rogers) In the Austin community on Chicago’s West Side sits the J.J. Walser House, designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1903. A local organization is working to preserve the landmark and transform it into a community asset for generations to come. Read more >

Latino Voices

Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, March 26, 2022 - Full Show

Univisión’s Alex Hernández guest hosts “Latino Voices.” (WTTW News) A 2021 measure intended to slow gentrification in Pilsen has been extended. A new book examines why many Latinos still lack health insurance. An exhibit explores the life of a Chicago activist. Read more >

Latino Voices

Ordinance Aimed at Slowing Gentrification Passes as Pilsen Rental Prices Increasing, Latino Population Shrinking

(WTTW News) Chicago City Council voted this week to extend an ordinance aimed at slowing gentrification and displacement in Pilsen and areas near the 606 trail. The measure imposes a fee on permits for the demolition of buildings with residential units. Read more >

Latino Voices

‘A Search for Unity’ Heralds the Life and Legacy of Rudy Lozano

(WTTW News) Rudy Lozano’s life is the subject of a new exhibit at UIC’s Richard J. Daley Library. It brings together a collection of papers, photos, and other items to tell the story of the activist and community organizer. It’s a story that some say is integral to the story of Chicago’s Latinos as they forged an identity in the city. Read more >

Latino Voices

New Book Studies Why Many Latinos Lack Health Insurance

University of Chicago sociology professor Robert Vargas’s new book “Uninsured in Chicago: How the Social Safety Net Leaves Latinos Behind” takes a deep dive into what keeps Latinos feeling locked out of health care access. Through extensive personal interviews conducted over three years, a new book takes a deep dive into what keeps Latinos feeling locked out of health care access. It’s called “Uninsured in Chicago: How the Social Safety Net Leaves Latinos Behind.” Read more >

Black Voices

The Last Word: Mother and Daughter Advocate For More Women in Trades

Zahrah Hill, who’s a plumber, and her mother Renee Wilson-Hill, a turbine generator winder, started their careers through Chicago Women In Trades. (WTTW News) 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. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, February 26, 2022 - Full Show

(WTTW News) Students protest racial slurs at a suburban high school. How a Chicago journalist uses her own experience to address trauma. Helping students pay for college. And our Black History Month Spotlight. Read more >

Black Voices

Niles West High School Students Speak Out Against Racist Attacks

Niles West High School in Skokie. (WTTW News) Students at Niles West High School in Skokie have led two walkouts in the last two weeks to protest what they call a culture of racism on campus.  Read more >

Black Voices

Black Voices Book Club: ‘Hood Healing: Interviews With Some of Chicago's Most Prolific Voices In Media and Black Culture’

Getting to the why is the theme of the book in the latest installment of our Black Voices Book Club Series. “Hood Healing: Interviews With Some of Chicago’s Most Prolific Voices In Media and Black Culture” unpacks the generational trauma Black people experience and how that impacts communities. 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

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

New ‘Chicago Stories’ Documentary Explores the Mourning, Destruction That Followed Martin Luther King Jr.’s Assassination

In 1966, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. came to Chicago’s West Side to protest against discriminatory housing practices. The neighborhood went into an uproar following his assassination in 1968, resulting in numerous riots and looting. “When the West Side Burned” outlines the destruction and struggle to recover. 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 >

Black Voices

Take a Look Inside the 1903 Frank Lloyd Wright House a Chicago Nonprofit Is Working to Restore

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Walser House, a Chicago 7 Most Endangered in 2025. (Eric Allix Rogers) In the Austin community on Chicago’s West Side sits the J.J. Walser House, designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1903. A local organization is working to preserve the landmark and transform it into a community asset for generations to come. Read more >

 

Black Voices

Free Boxing Club Empowers West Side Youth: ‘They Feel the Confidence’

(WTTW News) Roy Flowers started his boxing club in 2021 in the hopes of creating healthy, supportive spaces for the youth in his community. “I just wanted to be the mentor that I wish I had.” Read more >

Latino Voices

‘Like Lightning Struck’: Community Marks 60 Years Since the First Division Street Riot, Puerto Rican Rebellion

(Courtesy of the Chicago History Museum) While events for the community are planned for the entire weekend to celebrate Puerto Rican pride and culture, this year also honors the history of Chicago’s Boricua community — marking the 60-year anniversary of the first Division Street riot. Read more >