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

‘Physician Magician’ Pioneers English and Spanish Shows at the Rhapsody Theater

(The Silverman Group) In a series of back-to-back English and Spanish performances set for the Cinco de Mayo holiday weekend, the “Physician Magician” will become “El Medico Mago” at the Rhapsody Theater in Rogers Park. Read more >

Latino Voices

Chicago Tonight: Latino Voices, April 25, 2024 - Full Show

Advocates say huge warehouses and constant truck traffic are hurting Black and Brown communities. And the “physician magician” is here with a new trick up his sleeve. Read more >

Latino Voices

Judge Approves $12.25M Settlement Over Botched Little Village Smokestack Implosion

A still image from a video taken of the demolition of the Crawford Coal Plant smokestack, April 11, 2020. (Courtesy of Alejandro Reyes) “At the end of the day, it’s about respect for this community — the immigrant, Mexican community of Little Village, and it’s about justice,” attorney Scott Rauscher said. Read more >

Latino Voices

Suburbs Slow to Apply for Migrant Aid From $20M Cook County Fund

Inside the Ford Heights migrant shelter that’s slated to open April 23, 2024. (Courtesy of Chelsea Thomas at Empowerment Anywhere) The deadline for applications is Friday. And while there are more than 100 suburbs in the county that are eligible, only two have applied, including Oak Park and Ford Heights. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Sept. 11, 2024 - Full Show

Advocates on the lack of funding for child care services. A vacant lot in Bronzeville transforms into a neighborhood space. And what you should know as Black Restaurant Week kicks off. Read more >

Black Voices

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Sept. 4, 2024 - Full Show

The impact of Stateville’s closure on workers and those incarcerated. How some men in prison are hoping to change the way they can be released. And highlighting the history of Negro League baseball. Read more >

Black Voices

Illinois Doesn’t Have Parole. A Group of Incarcerated Men is Working to Change That

The nonprofit Prison + Neighborhood Arts/Education Project conducts a class at Stateville Correctional Center. (WTTW News) Parole Illinois was formed by men who are incarcerated in Illinois prisons. They’re working to reinstate the parole system after it was abolished in the state in 1978. Read more >

Black Voices

As Stateville Prison Nears Closure, Advocates Raise Concerns About Long-Lasting Impacts on Workers and Incarcerated Men

Stateville Correctional Center is pictured in a file photo. (Andrew Campbell / Capitol News Illinois) Advocates are raising concerns about the location of these facilities and the impact they will have on both those behind the prison’s walls and its employees.  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

Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, Sept. 3, 2025 - Full Show

Brandis Friedman hosts the Sept. 3, 2025, episode of "Chicago Tonight: Black Voices." (WTTW News) Community groups prepare for federal troops in Chicago. And the city’s minimum wage for tipped workers is going up — a look at the impact. 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 >