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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New Photo Exhibit Captures Life in Pilsen in the ‘90s
Japanese photographer Akito Tsuda was a student at Columbia College when a class assignment brought him to the Pilsen neighborhood in the 1990s. Now he’s back in the city revisiting the people and places he visited all those years ago.
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As Pride Month Shines in Chicago, Latino LGBTQ+ Communities Spotlight Youth Services
Chicago’s Latino lesbian, gay, bisexual and queer communities are embracing the city’s progress toward equality, while recognizing there’s still work to be done. Particularly when it comes to providing safe and welcoming environments for today’s LGBTQ+ youth.
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Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, June 6, 2024 - Full Show
Officials say more than half of the migrants forced to leave city shelters immediately returned. How Latino communities are celebrating Pride. And meet the first Mexican-born woman to travel to space.
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At 26, She Became the First Mexican-Born Woman to Travel to Space. Now She’s Working to Encourage the Next Generation
Many kids dream of blasting off into space one day — and Katya Echazarreta was no exception. As the first Mexican-born woman to travel to space, she is dedicated to showing other women the sky’s the limit when it comes to reaching their goals.
Read more >Black Voices
Chicago Couple Funding Billboards in Swing States Urging Black Men to Vote
The Black male vote has turned into a crucial bloc this election, with both Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump making appeals to get their votes.
Read more >Black Voices
Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Oct. 30, 2024 - Full Show
The mayor reverses course on a property tax hike. Black male voters and their critical role this presidential election. And calls for more state funding of early childhood services.
Read more >Black Voices
Advocates Seek Additional $60M in State Funding for Early Childhood Interventions
Early intervention, or EI, comprises an array of developmental and social-emotional services like speech and language, occupational and physical therapies and social work that are designed to improve the long-term outcomes of a child and family’s life.
Read more >Black Voices
Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Oct. 23, 2024 - Full Show
Chicago’s police misconduct agency identified a troubling pattern of traffic stops months before Dexter Reed’s death. And we visit a new brewpub in south suburban Homewood.
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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
Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Sept. 24, 2025 - Full Show
Organizers and local leaders push to reopen Weiss Hospital in Uptown. And a new campaign to address Chicago’s opioid epidemic.
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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