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Posts published in “Latest News”

Chicago’s In A Drought, So Why So Much Green?

The U.S. Drought Monitor lists Cook, DuPage, Lake, and Will counties all in a state of Moderate Drought, as of last week. Illinois State Climatologist, Dr. Trent Ford, shares what that means for us in this week’s climate conversation. Host: Melba Lara...

Chicago Public Schools CEO Is Stepping Down

CEO Janice Jackson is resigning after more than three years on on the job. She joins other top CPS leaders who recently announced their departures. Host: Melba Lara; Reporter: Sarah Karp

Did McDonald’s PPP Loans Protect Workers From COVID?

Freelance reporter Gabriel Thompson found one McDonalds on Chicago’s South West side where workers weren’t given face masks and social distancing policies weren’t enforced. Host: Araceli Gomez-Aldana; Producer: Mariah Woelfel

Can I Catch COVID-19 After Being Fully Vaccinated?

Dr. Mia Taromina, an infectious disease expert with the DuPage Medical Group, says your chances of being hospitalized or dying from COVID-19 after vaccination are 1 in a million. Find all our coverage at WBEZ.org/VaccineFAQ

Illinois’ Response To COVID-19 Outbreak At Vets’ Home

A new report details a lack of leadership and communication in response to an outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home in which 36 residents died. Host: Melba Lara; Reporter: Tony Arnold

Illinois Could Explore Legal Help In Deportation Cases

Immigrants with a lawyer are 11 times more likely to win removal cases but, in Illinois, 44% of immigrants face deportation without one. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: María Inés Zamudio

Tracking COPA’s Investigation Of Adam Toledo’s Killing

As Chicago grapples with the release of another video from a fatal police shooting, the investigation into the police killing of 13-year-old Adam Toledo is ongoing. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Patrick Smith

Anthony Alvarez Police Shooting Videos Released

Anthony Alvarez was shot and killed on March 31 during a foot chase. Videos show he was armed, but had his back turned. Host: Becky Vevea; Reporter: Patrick Smith

Will Malls Be Victims Of The COVID-19 Pandemic?

This spring, people are emerging from their pandemic hibernation to shop, but experts say it likely won’t be enough to save some Chicago area malls. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Sarah Karp

Chicago Park District Investigates Sex Abuse Claims

Confidential documents show the inspector general is looking into “allegedly toxic and dangerous” work environments at beaches and pools. Host: Melba Lara; Reporter: Dan Mihalopoulos

What Causes Chicago’s Fluctuating Spring Weather?

Longtime Chicagoans know that “spring” is sometimes more myth than reality. Dr. Scott Collis, an atmospheric scientist at Argonne National Laboratory, helps explain the big variations we tend to see in spring weather. Host: Melba Lara; Producer: Laure...

Chinatown Launches Their Own Vaccination Clinics

Chicago didn’t prioritize Chinatown for COVID-19 vaccines. So community leaders set up clinics themselves. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Kristen Schorsch

Chicago COVID-19 Vaccination Sites Offering Walk-Ins

If you want a vaccine in Chicago, you can get one today. Chicago’s Public Health Commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, says now that demand is down appointments aren’t booked up within seconds. Find all our coverage at WBEZ.org/COVID

‘The Porch’ Playlist

To help us tune into the atmosphere of his book, Charlie Hailey made a playlist that will musically transport you to his porch on Florida's Homosassa River on a hazy, lazy summer's day. Click through to listen.

The post ‘The Porch’ Playlist appeared first on The Chicago Blog.

Our Liberation Is Bound With Each Others’

Lisa Doi is an organizer with Tsuru for Solidarity, a group of Japanese Americans using the folding of paper origami cranes as a way to spark changes to U.S. immigration policy. Host: Melba Lara; Producer: Bill Healy

An Earth Day Reading List

First observed in 1970, Earth Day has grown into an annual, April 22 celebration of the natural world—and the importance of humanity’s role in protecting it. As we mark Earth Day 2021, read on for ten recommended books that are sure to inspire thought, awe, and action. Barbara J. King’s Animals’ Best Friends: Putting Compassion to Work for Animals in Captivity and in the Wild “King’s Animals’ Best Friends is the most comprehensive exploration I’ve read of the complex relationship between the human and nonhuman, full of great insights and practical information.”—Jeff VanderMeer, New York Times Book Review, “By the Book” Charley Hailey’s The Porch: Meditations on the Edge of Nature “Hailey bears daily witness to the subtle vibrations of the natural world that well up from below, drift down from above, or move across his screened porch in the form of air, sound, light, weather, or wing beats. With this book, he fulfills a fundamental requirement of morality—paying attention.”—Robert Pogue Harrison, author of Juvenescence Sandra Knapp’s Extraordinary Orchids “In this captivating overview, Knapp covers the biology of both terrestrial and epiphytic (tree-dwelling) orchids and explains how epiphytes are adapted to living in trees, even using a special form of […]

The post An Earth Day Reading List appeared first on The Chicago Blog.