Fighting For a Fair Census in 2020
In an absence of federal investment, organizers across the region are working to improve the chances of an accurate count.
Top Stories of 2019
Ten stories our readers kept coming back to.
The Enduring Legacy of Decatur’s Carnegie Library
An ode to a community institution.
Witness to History
Juanita Mitchell, now 107 years old, saw the 1919 Chicago Race Riots firsthand.
“On Strike for Better Schools”
Photos from the Chicago Teachers Union strike.
Between Old House and New
Coming to terms with a complicated family legacy on an Illinois farm.
Is the Mississippi River Ready for Climate Change?
Decades beyond its intended lifespan, the river’s shipping infrastructure faces an uncertain future.
How Poverty Found a Home in the Chicago Suburbs
The changing geography of poverty in Illinois and across the country.
“Out of the Closets and Into the Streets”
Queer Midwestern communities were politically active in the pivotal years leading up to Stonewall.
Gambling on Hemp
Illinois began accepting applications to grow industrial hemp at the end of April. But the first legal crop in more than eighty years is accompanied by a lot of uncertainty.
Tying the Green New Deal to Environmental Justice in Chicago
The youth-led national Sunrise Movement made a case to local organizers.
A Complicated Heritage of Coal
In southern Illinois, one community’s complex relationship with the industry on display.