Machine inspectors, e-pollbooks and scanners form a quiet civic stack built around troubleshooting, training and access.

Fellows will contribute reporting that expands the reach of their storytelling and strengthens journalism that informs, connects, and empowers communities

A thoughtful, critical look at the American experiment, balancing gratitude for the American Dream with a deep analysis of historical contradictions.

How civil society groups are building trust, fostering dialogue, and creating shared spaces where residents can shape long‑term solutions together.

DACA recipients are losing their ability to work — and their security in the United States — due to prolonged processing times for renewals.

The award winning series highlights personal narratives from across the country, elevating voices often overlooked in national conversations about belonging and civic life.

Program affords families the opportunity to stay in neighborhoods they’ve lived in their whole lives and be protected from the rapid gentrification.

It's an economic advance from communities whose contributions have historically been pivotal in the nation's development.

An Authentic Taste of San Juan in Boston!

“These conversations are necessary to enact change and reform policy,” said Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi.

New report shows lower-wage workers are seeing faster wage growth but Black, Latino and women workers still lag behind.

“These daughters and granddaughters of immigrants are combining the extraordinary and selfless work ethic of their elders with rapid growth of human capital to give life to the U.S. economy,” said Dr. Hayes-Bautista.

“I’ve just grown to love … creating a space for Latine students of all countries,” said Denice Melendez-Macin, co-president of the organization. 

Fordham University's Swipe Out Hunger initiative helps students battling food insecurity.

“It was perfect for me because I was able to hear from current students with backgrounds similar to mine."

Cranston Kindergarten Teacher Maria Santonastaso was announced as a National 2024-25 Milken Educator Awardee this fall. The ceremony launched the historic Milken Educator Awards season, making Santonastaso the 3,000th Milken Educator in the national network.

Students are afraid that the information they provide will supply the incoming administration with data that could make it easier to deport their parents.

Republican education superintendent Tom Horne is back and reigniting his push for the outlier policy.

At a time when we’re seeing climate change causing record-breaking heat, massive droughts in some areas, and extreme floods in others, it’s never been more critical to evaluate the responses to these environmental crises. Residential and commercial buildings that burn fossil fuels, such as gas and propane, to power heating and cooking are by far the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. In Chicago, these buildings are responsible for most of the city’s carbon pollution. The most vulnerable, communities of color, struggle to have a seat at the table in the discussion and debate to remove these emissions from their buildings and ultimately make them healthier to live in. Addressing the public health and climate crisis is the Southeast Environmental Task Force. Yessenia Balcazar, Senior Resilient Community Planning Manager with SETF, was a guest on the program “3 Questions With…” hosted by Hugo Balta, publisher of IL Latino News. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5m8prOYs2s Balcazar spoke [...]

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is promising to dismantle environmental racism, but distressed residents in Pilsen are apprehensive.

Above are the views of East Garfield Park I get every time I step out of school. Trash and abandonment surround Westinghouse, entrapping its students in hopelessness. For three years, I have been surrounded by the same bleak background every time I look out of my classroom window, with it only getting progressively worse. These photographs were taken on the same day, June 4th, 2023. The first set of seven pictures is from Logan Square, and the second is from East Garfield Park. Though the distance between these neighborhoods is at most ten minutes, a significant difference in investment is apparent. It is no coincidence that what separates these two communities are the demographics. According to the CMAP, Logan Square is around 52 percent white, while East Garfield Park is roughly 85 percent Black.  The Logan Square Chamber of Commerce has the mission statement of helping the economic growth of Logan Square. [...]

The South Side of Chicago in particular, saw an outburst of steel production during World War II that at one point, accounted for ​​20 percent of all steel made in the U.S. But steel production in the ’50s and ’60s declined and many factories were abandoned, leaving behind harm to the land and its residents. Promises by the government to clean up contaminated and vacant properties have been slow to materialize, leaving the community to come up with its own solutions. Organizations like the Urban Growers Collective are spearheading such efforts to make green spaces more just and equitable in areas that have been historically divested. Darion Crawford, an Urban Farmer and Compost Coordinator with UGC spoke with with Hugo Balta, publisher of Illinois Latino News on the podcast, “3 Questions With…” about supporting communities in developing systems where food is grown, prepared, and distributed within the community itself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oDh55hSPyU Crawford is also [...]

IL Latino News covers the social determinants of health and democracy. Neighborhood and Built Environment have health impacts for the people who live there. Aspects of neighborhood environments include walkability, land use mix and urbanity, retail, recreational areas, restaurants, fast food outlets, cultural and education institutions, and pollution, such as from traffic or waste sites. IL Latino News applies the principles of Solutions Journalism in its invesitgative reporting. Activists across the South Side of Chicago demand transparency from the Department of Water Management as the city attempts to combat lead contamination in drinking water. While the City has not publicly reported new results since the end of 2021, existing data from the City of Chicago website shows that a significant portion of water tests with elevated lead levels were recorded in Black and Hispanic communities. Linda Gonzalez, a member of the People’s Council of Southeast Chicago, is advocating for change following her [...]

The Go Green Fresh Community Market in Chicago’s Englewood is an oasis. With its earthy-colored signs and stalls stacked with leafy greens, the local grocery store sits at the intersection of 63rd and Racine – right in the heart of a food desert, where locals have little or no access to fresh produce.  Food deserts, according to the USDA, are entirely man-made urban areas with a poverty rate of at least 20% and where at least a third of the population lives more than a mile from a supermarket or large grocery store. In Chicago, food deserts make up the majority of South and West neighborhoods, prompting around 500 thousand residents to shop at local corner stores.  A typical corner store, however, is crammed, small, and does not carry fresh food options, explains Elliot Clay, state programs director at the Illinois Environmental Council. Results of concentrated shopping at corner [...]

Just 58% of Hispanic adults in the U.S. can recognize stroke signs, according to the CDC.

“Art helps our seniors focus and concentrate—it gives them a purpose to feel appreciated…,” said Luisa Ornelas, LAMDA program coordinator.

Reproductive justice advocates say Latinas are being lured by promises of free pregnancy tests and free diapers. Many are unknowingly walking into clinics that push a hidden agenda.

Should traditional healthcare practices include sound and light therapies inspired by ancestral knowledge?

Meet the teens tired of hiding their periods. They’re taking on schools, cultural norms, and outdated policies to demand change.

The report finds that it is essential to prioritize equitable health and education in improving the chances of a better future for Latino children.