In this Sunday, June 11, 2017 file photo, Equality March for Unity and Pride participants march past the White House in Washington. (AP Photo / Carolyn Kaster)

The federal government will protect gay and transgender people against sex discrimination in health care, the Biden administration declared Monday, reversing a Trump-era policy that narrowed rights at the intersection of changing social mores and sensitive medical decisions. 

(WTTW News)

A new study by Northwestern University’s MacArthur Justice Center found that 86% of ShotSpotter alerts resulted in no report of any crime, leading to questions of the gunfire detection system’s value in violence reduction.

In this Dec. 4, 2017, file photo, a farmer harvests crops near Sinsinawa Mound in Wisconsin. (Eileen Meslar / Telegraph Herald via AP, File)
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A group of Midwestern farmers sued the federal government Thursday alleging they can't participate in a COVID-19 loan forgiveness program because they're white.

In this Feb 24, 2006, file photo, Deborah Watts, left, and Ollie Gordon, right, both cousins of Emmett Till, accompany Principal Mary Rogers as they walk through a hallway at Emmett Louis Till Math & Science Academy, in Chicago, honoring the 14-year-old former student. Till's lynching galvanized the civil rights movement. (AP Photo / M. Spencer Green, File)

The murders of Emmett Till and George Floyd were separated by more than six decades, contrasting circumstances and countless protests, but their families say they feel an intimate connection in their grief and what comes next.

(WTTW News)

The inspector general released an audit earlier this week that found that the department’s rules designed to prevent discrimination and sexual harassment are “insufficient.” 

(WTTW News)

Policies governing the Chicago Fire Department—which is 90% male and 66% white—may comply with federal, state and local laws but they “are insufficient,” according to an audit released Wednesday by Inspector General Joseph Ferguson.

(WTTW News)

The DOJ says the city is required to install accessible pedestrian signals that give audio or tactile cues when it’s safe to cross the street. According to the suit, Chicago has just 15 of those signals out of 2,700 crosswalks with visual signals.

University of Oregon player Sedona Prince is shining light on the inequalities between weight-room facilities for the men’s teams competing in Indianapolis and the women’s teams competing in San Antonio. (WTTW News via @sedonaprince_)

College basketball’s most important competition is in full swing. But a tweet by University of Oregon player Sedona Prince is shining light on the inequalities between weight-room facilities for the men’s and women’s teams. Deadspin senior writer and editor Julie DiCaro offers her perspective.

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“These conversations are a slap in the face to people that have suffered great atrocities over time in this country," said Ald. Jason Ervin, the chairman of the City Council Black Caucus.

Downtown Evanston (WTTW News)

Using tax money from the sale of recreational marijuana, the Chicago suburb of Evanston has become the first U.S. city to make reparations available to its Black residents for past discrimination and the lingering effects of slavery.

State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr speaks Monday, March 22, 2021 about the anti-Asian discrimination. (WTTW News)
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A coalition of state representatives and organizations representing the Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander community called on residents to unite against discrimination in the wake of a mass shooting in Georgia that eight people, including six women of Asian descent.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Atlanta on Friday to meet with Asian American leaders in the wake of deadly shootings that killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent. (Jim Watson / AFP / Getty Images)
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President Joe Biden on Friday condemned rising hate crimes against Asian Americans in the wake of the mass shooting in the Atlanta area that left eight people dead, including six women of Asian descent.

Erica Lopez speaks with “Chicago Tonight” about the death of her mother and father, who both contracted COVID-19. (WTTW News)

From rates of infection to unemployment following the economic shutdown, some residents of Chicago have been cut deeper by the pandemic. We talk about the specific challenges facing hard-hit communities, and some of the support systems in place.

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Aldermen on Thursday said they would do more than just talk about whether the city should pay reparations to Chicagoans who are the descendants of enslaved African Americans, but acknowledged that it had taken too long to even begin the discussion.

(WTTW News)

A new report says anti-Asian hate crimes in 16 of America’s largest cities increased by 149% in 2020 compared to the previous year. We hear about local efforts to combat intolerance.

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This week illustrated how far the U.S. has come in the battle for transgender rights and representation — and how far the country still has to go.