Features | History | Parks | South Shore
Bridgeport | Development | Politics
A Starbucks is Born
Bridgeport residents protest the forthcoming coffee chain
Chinatown | Elections | Politics
A Chinatown Civics Lesson
Building power in a neighborhood without representation
The Numbers Game
Previous election data shows how wards 14, 15, 20, and 25 can be won
Education | Elections | Kenwood | Politics
Back to School
Kenwood Academy students grill mayoral candidates on education and race
Meet the Challengers: Raynetta Greenleaf
The Weekly sits down with the patient care facilitator and nonprofit founder running for alderman in the 17th Ward
Meet the Candidates: Troy Hernandez
The Weekly sits down with the data scientist and environmental activist running for alderman in the 25th Ward
Meet the Challengers: Jaime Guzmán
The Weekly sits down with the nonprofit and government analyst running for alderman in the 14th Ward
The Ward Organizations
Burning and building bridges in the race for alderman in the 25th Ward
Who Will Replace Willie?
Willie Cochran isn’t going anywhere. His City Council seat, however…
The Curse of the 20th Ward
Stakes are high as the 20th Ward prepares to replace an indicted alderman—again: Part one of a joint special report by the Weekly and the Hyde Park Herald
Getting to the Roots
Hair artist Mo G goes from doing her cousin’s hair as a kid to styling some of the biggest names in the city
Education | Fashion | Opinions & Editorials
Op-Ed: Creating School Uniforms That Inspire
Designer Des Money on his fashion line for Betty Shabazz school students
Meet the Challengers: Pete DeMay
The Weekly sits down with the union organizer and environmental justice activist running for alderman in the 12th Ward
Meet the Challengers: José Rico
The Weekly sits down with the nonprofit executive and former principal running for alderman in the 12th Ward
Somebody You Should Know
At Room 43 with the Charles Heath Quartet, and an interview with Almarie Wagner
History | Music | Stage & Screen
The Meter of the Blues
With the Oscar Brown Jr. Archive Project, artists Maggie and Africa Brown have finally come home
South Side Elections: Ward By Ward
Weekly writers break down the race for alderman in every South Side ward
What Should I Know About the Proposed Public Bank of Chicago?
A proposal for a public bank has voters scratching their heads. Chicago is one of dozens of cities and states that are exploring or discussing similar proposals.
Meet the Challengers: Rafael Yañez
The Weekly sits down with the nonprofit leader and former cop running for alderman in the 15th Ward
Meet the Challengers: Tanya Patiño
The Weekly sits down with the civil engineer and soccer coach running for alderman in the 14th Ward
Meet the Candidates: Jeanette Taylor
The Weekly sits down with the community activist running for alderman in the 20th Ward
Meet the Candidates: Maya Hodari
The Weekly sits down with the CHA development director and community organizer running for alderman in the 20th Ward
Meet the Candidates: Nicole Johnson
The Weekly sits down with the educator running for alderman in the 20th Ward
Development | Features | History
The Fight to Remain
A new affordable housing complex at 63rd and Cottage Grove has Woodlawn’s low-income residents wondering about their place in the neighborhood
Meet the Challengers: Byron Sigcho Lopez
The Weekly sits down with the educator and community activist for alderman in the 25th Ward
Meet the Challengers: Hilario Dominguez
The Weekly sits down with the educator and organizer running for alderman in the 25th Ward
Meet the Challengers: David Mihalyfy
The Weekly sits down with the healthcare aide and union organizer running for alderman in the 11th Ward
Meet the Challengers: Gabriel Piemonte
The Weekly sits down with the journalist and activist running for alderman in the 5th Ward
Liberation in View?
Poet H. Melt’s new chapbook pushes us to imagine a future of trans liberation, but some poems fall flat on the way
The Farmers' Lobby
Volunteer ambassadors prepare to talk "urban ag" with their aldermen
Healing and Funding Chicago's Food System
Black and brown farmers collectives earn recognition through a newly launched grassroots funding model
Education Uninterrupted
Students, teachers, and parents celebrate saving National Teachers Academy in the South Loop
Learning to Program—Swiftly
The first cohort of students complete City Colleges' coding bootcamp pilot
The Guide for the Zoning Perplexed
A new handbook seeks to empower community members by explaining public land use
Where to Cash Your Check?
The impact of currency exchanges on South Side neighborhoods
Is Eddie Next?
Mayoral candidates say they would replace Eddie Johnson as superintendent
Losing the Thread
A new book highlights Chicago’s many art movements but fails to tie it all together
Caring for a Segregated City
An interview with longtime Chicago public health nurse Joan Lawson on the importance of caring, family, and education
New Voices, New Faces
An interview with Clyde Moreau, organizer of the inaugural Decibel Crawl Fest
Do You Know Margaret Burroughs?
A symposium on art in Chicago and a Margaret Burroughs exhibition explore and celebrate the South Side’s contribution to art
The Overlooked Legacy of Ida B. Wells
Michelle Duster, Eve Ewing, Nikole Hannah-Jones, and Natalie Moore discussed the journalist and civil rights activist’s life and legacy
Healthier Words for a Healthier Lifestyle
Melo Makes Music talks mental wellness, seasonal depression, and his budding career as a performance artist
Development | Features | History | Politics | Woodlawn
Where Are You Going, Woodlawn?
At a community celebration, residents and visitors consider the neighborhood’s next chapter
Tap Is Music. Rhythm Is Everywhere.
South Side tap dancers show the next generation what’s possible
Not Forgotten
An exhibition at an East Side gallery remembers the dead through the art they left behind
Cognitive Dissidence
Chicago’s abolitionists make space for conversation after the Van Dyke trial
Activism | Immigration | Police | Politics
Know Your Movements: The #EraseTheDatabase Campaign
The organizers working to reform and abolish the city’s gang database
Activism | Development | Environment
Dumping Dirty Industry
Across the South Side, neighborhood groups fight for environmental justice
Interviews | Radio | Visual Arts
Creative Control
Ciera Mckissick talks the importance of space, connecting creatives, and how Chicago has unexpectedly become her home
Nature | Opinions & Editorials
Scavenging the South Lakefront
A researcher writes about how data is informing the development of the Burnham Wildlife Corridor
Avian Oasis
Restoration at Indian Ridge Marsh has turned a wasteland into an important home for wildlife
Kopano, In Their Own World
The nineteen-year-old South Shore native sits down with the Weekly to discuss donuts, dreams, and art
Bringing Up the Backwaters
After decades of debt and secrecy, the Illinois International Port District presents a plan
Development | Environment | Far Southeast Side | Nature
Shoreline Abnormality
An industrial corridor’s past and future, as seen from the waters of the Calumet
Interview Issue 2018 | Politics
Continuing to Challenge the Status Quo
A family legacy of activism guides mayoral candidate Amara Enyia’s vision of social justice in the city
Beer and Bingo in Bridgeport
Steve Badauskas builds community around an old pastime in a changing neighborhood
History | Interview Issue 2018
Bones of the City
A Chicago archaeologist makes the case for digging up the past
Soil and Sovereignty
A Pullman resident uses mushrooms to heal a formerly toxic site in the neighborhood
From Rink to Radio
Ahead of Teklife’s latest album release, the Weekly sat down with three of its long standing members to talk Chicago, history of Teklife, and what it’s meant to them
Interview Issue 2018 | Music | Photo Essay
Bringing Jazz Back to the Alley
In South Shore, an old tradition is revived for a day
Shimer College Leaves the South Side
An uncertain future for the small, strange Great Books school
Growing Neighborhoods
An art exhibit connects local goals and larger climate problems
Features | Food | Politics | Woodlawn
God's Little Acres
First Presbyterian Church has fostered community gardens since the nineteenth century. Its now-former pastor nearly put an end to that.
Agriculture | Features | Food | Politics
A Lot to Lose
After the near-sale of a community garden in West Englewood, questions arise about what it takes for gardens on the South Side to stay afloat.
Stewards For the Land
Some of the farmers behind the city’s newer generation of cooperative farms
Activism | Features | Police | Politics
The Fight Over Chicago's Largest Private Police Force
Organizers return to challenging the University of Chicago Police Department's practices—this time with a more radical agenda
The Fight to Stay
An innovative new housing cooperative may be a solution for residents to combat Pilsen’s gentrification
A City Built on Sludge
An ambitious book chronicles the early years of the South and West Sides’ sewage systems
A New Home for Home Movies
Digital archive immortalizes film footage of family life on the South Side
The Living Legacy of the Pullman Porters
The Pullman Porter Museum renews its push for a national registry
Interviews | Music | Radio
Know Me More
For artist-abolitionist Ric Wilson, Black art need not be bad or sad
Mango and Maki on 26th Street
Japanese-Brazilian cuisine finds an audience in Little Village
A Cuban Food Haven
Grilled steak, seasoned veggies, and some of the best café con leche ever
Education | Features | Politics