Advocates say as many as 40,000 youths statewide could lose access to tutoring services, recreation and other extracurricular activities this summer unless Illinois lawmakers approve an infusion of funds to keep them going.
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Thousands of Illinois Students at Risk of Losing Access to After-School Programs
May 7, 2024 | Peter Hancock — Capitol News Illinois
Noting Campus Protests, Democrats Are Preparing for Intense Action at the DNC in Chicago This Summer
May 7, 2024 | Associated Press
Activists have sued in federal court, alleging First Amendment violations because the city has only offered permits for demonstrations miles from the United Center, where Biden is scheduled to accept the Democratic presidential nomination.
Large-Scale Study in Illinois, Other States Seeks to Better Understand Cancer in Black Women
May 7, 2024 | Eunice Alpasan
A major long-term study launched by the American Cancer Society aims to better understand cancer risk factors and outcomes for Black women in the U.S, who continue to face disparities in cancer prevention, detection, treatment and survival.
WTTW News Explains: What’s Chicago’s History as a National Political Convention Host?
May 7, 2024 | WTTW News
Chicago is set to host the Democratic National Convention this summer. It will be the city’s 27th time hosting a national political convention. Chicago conventions have been some of the most memorable, raucous and consequential in American history.
Boy Scouts of America Changing Name to Scouting America After Years of Woes
May 7, 2024 | Associated Press
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history. The organization steeped in tradition has made seismic changes after decades of turmoil, from finally allowing gay youth to welcoming girls throughout its ranks.
Stormy Daniels Describes Meeting Donald Trump During Occasionally Graphic Testimony in Hush Money Trial
May 7, 2024 | Associated Press
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump’s hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Illinois House GOP Advances 2 Human Trafficking Victim Protection Bills as Others Remain in Limbo
May 7, 2024 | Cole Longcor — Capitol News Illinois
Human trafficking remains a problem in Illinois, with some data suggesting it has increased in recent years. Data from the Human Trafficking Institute ranks Illinois the 5th highest state for sex trafficking, and 9th highest for labor trafficking.
‘I Felt More Alone Than Ever’: Former Juvenile Detainees Speak Out After New Lawsuit Alleges Decades of Sex Abuse in Illinois Youth Centers
May 7, 2024 | Matt Masterson
The alleged sexual abuse in these cases occurred between 1996 and 2017 and the victims were all minors — some as young as 12 — when the alleged abuse occurred, according to the complaint.
University of Chicago Clears a Pro-Palestinian Demonstration as Protests Spread Across the Country
May 7, 2024 | Associated Press
Police cleared a pro-Palestinian tent encampment at the University of Chicago early Tuesday morning as tension ratcheted up in standoffs with demonstrators at other college campuses across the U.S.
Chicago’s First Chief Homelessness Officer Begins Work on Long-Term Plan, Immediate Problems
May 6, 2024 | Shelby Hawkins
Chicago native Sendy L. Soto became the city’s first chief homelessness officer. Part of her new role will be to devise a five-year plan to end homelessness.
Local Officials, Developers Mark Start of Construction on Redevelopment of Iconic James R. Thompson Center
May 6, 2024 | Eunice Alpasan
Elected officials and developers gathered at the Thompson Center on Monday to help mark the start of Google’s $280 million makeover of the former state government building.
The Chicago Archaeopteryx, the Field Museum’s Newest Dinosaur, Meets the Public
May 6, 2024 | Patty Wetli
The Field Museum ushered in a new era of scientific exploration with Monday’s unveiling of the Chicago Archaeopteryx.
Chicago’s Archaeopteryx
May 6, 2024 | WTTW News
A piece of evolutionary history has made its way to the Field Museum. A remarkably preserved Archaeopteryx fossil has been acquired, offering an astonishing window into the transition between dinosaurs and modern birds. This rare and scientifically significant find sheds new light on the origins of flight and the incredible journey of evolution.
May 6, 2024 - Full Show
May 6, 2024 | WTTW News
Meet Chicago’s first chief homelessness officer. Birds are modern-day dinosaurs — the Field Museum says it now has a rare fossil to prove it.
New Lawsuit Claims Dozens of Juveniles Subjected to Sexual Abuse in Illinois Detention Centers
May 6, 2024 | Matt Masterson
Nearly 100 people are claiming in a new lawsuit that they were subjected to sexual abuse and assault as the hands of correctional officers and staffers at facilities in Chicago and across the state.
Probe Opened Into Allegations of Excessive Force by Chicago Police Officers During Pro-Palestinian Protests
May 6, 2024 | Heather Cherone
A spokesperson for the Chicago Police Department said CPD would fully cooperate with the probe, which comes approximately 100 days before the Democratic National Convention comes to Chicago.
A Subset of Alzheimer’s Cases May Be Caused by Two Copies of a Single Gene, New Research Shows
May 6, 2024 | Associated Press
The vast majority of Alzheimer’s cases occur after age 65. But research published Monday suggests that for people who carry not one but two copies of the gene, it’s more than a risk factor, it’s an underlying cause of the mind-robbing disease.
Where in the World is Archaeopteryx?
May 6, 2024 | Patty Wetli
Only 13 specimens of Archaeopteryx — and one special feather — are known to exist since the first Archaeopteryx fossils were discovered in 1860. Most come from the same deposit of Solnhofen Limestone in Bavaria, Germany.
Birds Are Dinosaurs: How a Family Tree That Spans T. Rex to Pigeons Informs Our Understanding of Life on Earth
May 6, 2024 | Nicole Cardos
Shake any family tree, and a few skeletons are bound to fall out — that’s as true for birds as it is for people. Except that for birds, the wacky cousin lurking in one of those branches is T. Rex.
The Field Museum Now Has an Incredibly Rare Fossil Proving Birds Are Dinosaurs. Here’s a Behind-the-Scenes Look at How They Got It
May 6, 2024 | Patty Wetli
The Field formally announced to the world what had become a not-so-well-kept secret: The museum had acquired just the 13th specimen known to exist of Archaeopteryx, a fossil often described as the “missing link” between dinosaurs and birds.
Meet Jingmai O’Connor, the Punk Rock Paleontologist Who Leads the Field Museum’s Archaeopteryx Team
May 6, 2024 | Patty Wetli
WTTW News sat down with paleornithologist Jingmai O’Connor and talked about dinosaurs, birds, the Chicago Archaeopteryx, evolution and why studying fossil birds is more important now than ever.
7 People Killed in Weekend Shootings Across Chicago: Police
May 6, 2024 | Matt Masterson
According to Chicago Police Department figures, 31 people were shot in 24 separate shootings between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday.
Johnson’s Senior Leadership Team More Diverse Than Previous Mayors’ Cabinets: Analysis
May 6, 2024 | Heather Cherone
In all, the 34 appointments Johnson made between May 2023 and April 2024 that require confirmation by the Chicago City Council reflect the city’s racial diversity, as measured by the 2020 census, more closely than the appointments made by his two predecessors, former Mayors Lori Lightfoot and Rahm Emanuel.
Methodists End Bans on Gay Clergy and Same-Sex Marriage, Closing 50 Years of Battles for Mainline Protestants
May 5, 2024 | Associated Press
The reversals can be seen as marking the end of a half-century of epic battles and schisms over LGBTQ involvement — not only in the United Methodist Church but in U.S. mainline Protestant denominations overall.
Denial and Uncertainty Are Looming Over a Biden-Trump Rematch 6 Months Out From Election Day
May 5, 2024 | Associated Press
Exactly six months before Election Day, Biden and Trump are locked in the first contest in 112 years with a current and former president competing for the White House. It’s a race that is at once deeply entrenched and highly in flux.
Angel Reese, Kamilla Cardoso Chicago Sky Debuts Watched Widely on Fan’s Livestream After WNBA is Unable to Broadcast
May 4, 2024 | Associated Press
The WNBA's app had incorrectly listed the game as available to watch, leading to confusion from fans before the league clarified that only Caitlin Clark’s debut with the Indiana Fever was being broadcast.