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’s Workforce After More Than a Year Into the Pandemic

Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation. Federal pandemic unemployment benefits ended on Labor Day, cutting off weekly payments to more than 300,000 people in the state.  Read more >

Latino Voices

Little Village Arch Granted Preliminary Landmark Status

The iconic arch that welcomes everyone to La Villita has preliminary landmark status. (WTTW News) Should full landmark status be granted, the arch will become the first symbol of Chicago’s Latino community to receive that honor, as well as the first time an architect of Mexican descent has had a structure landmarked here.  Read more >

Latino Voices

Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, September 4, 2021 - Full Show

A local doctor combats COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. We talk September baseball with the Spanish-language broadcasters for the Sox and Cubs. And teaching young people to document their communities.  Read more >

Latino Voices

How Health Care Workers Are Handling COVID-19 Vaccine Concerns

(WTTW News) Despite the FDA’s full approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, some people are still hesitant to roll up their sleeves. A local medical professional talks about the reasoning behind some of this reluctancy and how it’s being addressed. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, August 8, 2021 - Full Show

One-on-one with a local nonprofit leader working with young men of color whose stepson was recently killed. A guaranteed income pilot program. How white people can help reduce the wealth disparity.  Read more >

Black Voices

West Side Youth Drum Line, Dance Team to Perform at Lollapalooza

Hope Junior Drumline and WestDance have been practicing three hours a day, five days a week since late June to prepare for their performance at Lollapalooza. (WTTW News) Members of East Garfield Park’s Hope Junior Drumline and WestDance Team have been practicing three hours a day, five days a week since late June to prepare for their 10-minute performance at Lollapalooza on Sunday. Read more >

Black Voices

Creative Take on Vision Boarding Aims to Help Entrepreneurs Pursue Their Passions

Karen Spears talks about her “mind-mapping” process. (WTTW News) We meet local entrepreneur Karen Spears, whose “mind-mapping” process helps people figure out the first or next step in starting a business, all while preserving an art form she’s passionate about.  Read more >

Black Voices

Lotteries, Licenses and Lawsuits: Attaining Equity in the Cannabis Industry

Workers put the finishing touches on the Sunnyside dispensary in Lakeview on Dec. 30, 2019, just two days before recreational marijuana became legal in Illinois. (WTTW News) When recreational marijuana was legalized in Illinois, Gov. J. B. Pritzker’s stated goal was to use the burgeoning industry to reverse the harm done to Black and brown communities during the war on drugs. But those profiting from pot sales are nearly all white men. 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

Advocates Hope New Illinois Law Helps Lower Maternal Mortality Rate for Black Women

An infant and audience member sit in the crowd of a news conference in Chicago’s Fulton Market District neighborhood. Gov. JB Pritzker signed House Bill 5142 into law, with the hope of lowering infant and maternal mortality rates across the state. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Dilpreet Raju) According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black women are two-and-a-half times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than White women. A new state law aims to remedy that by expanding insurance coverage during and after pregnancy.  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 >