In a red, brick building in Pilsen, about 75 attendees squeezed into ISA Studios, a multidisciplinary arts and community space where roughly twenty storytellers took the stage to deliver their stories in the form of spoken word, music, and performances.
Read MoreAfter years of creative advertising work, Jessica Willis started her own blog “Swaggerless” and began highlighting artists’ work from around the world. She soon felt unfulfilled, not seeing tangible results from her work, and decided to organize a pop-up art show in Los Angeles that quickly outgrew her expectations.
Read MoreTrinisa Williams is a member of the Hatchery, a food business incubator opened Dec. 6 in East Garfield Park. She's also a resident of Garfield Park— one of only a few West Side entrepreneurs working with the Hatchery to start a business.
Read MoreEarlier this month, teens from across the city of Chicago came out to St. Paul’s United Church of Christ in the Lincoln Park neighborhood for UCAN’s fourth annual Youth Peace Summit. The daylong event held four peer-led workshops, which paved the way for conversations on diversity, mental health and leadership.
Read MoreThe Bloc, a non-profit youth boxing club in North Lawndale, pairs mentorship with training in boxing for kids on the West Side of Chicago. Launched by Jamyle Cannon, the program offers a safe place for kids to go after school to do homework, learn discipline, and maximize their potential. Modeled after its success at DRW, the Bloc is now in the process of starting two new programs at Frazier Preparatory Academy and the KIPP One Academy.
Read MoreAccording to Rev. Celeste Groff, gardening is good for the body. A pastor at North Lawndale’s Chicago First Church of Brethren and caretaker of New Horizons Community Garden, she knows firsthand that the key to growth involves care. Especially for Groff, gardening is not just about reaping the benefits of fruits and vegetables.
Read MoreAdvocates and community members from southwest Chicago gathered at the City Hall Nov. 14 to urge officials to support a $25 million budget amendment for long-term mental health services and push for the reopening of several public mental health clinics that were closed in 2012.
Read MoreWinter is almost here, and the beekeepers of Chicago's West Side are stepping up to prepare their bees for the bitter cold. This is how they are keeping their bees warm, healthy, and well fed until the spring.
Read MoreFacing constant battles with mental health, Angelica Lewis, a resident of North Lawndale, turned to her yoga mat to find inner peace and balance. She began visiting area yoga studios, but while there, she often found herself displaced. Lewis said she’s a curvier woman, and most classes or instructors weren’t considerate of her body’s needs.
Read MoreSeven-year-old Kailyn McIntire twirled the brand new hair extensions that she tied into her braids. “I have pink hair!” She squealed. McIntire won the hair accessories just minutes before in one of the many raffles offered at the Safe and Peaceful Community Rally.
Read MoreCity Limits is a series from The Real Chi profiling artists who are not only pushing the culture forward with their work but actively working in their communities to better the city of Chicago.
Read MoreLast month, the Garfield Park Conservatory hosted its annual FLEUROTICA runway show, where floral designers from across the Chicagoland were given the opportunity to showcase garments made entirely of plants, flowers, and organic materials.
Read MoreThe newly-renovated Woodson Regional Library got more than just a facelift. After a nine-million dollar restoration, the library is set to become the city’s first dementia-friendly library.
Read MoreIncarceration affects many black and brown people in Chicago, whether prosecuted or not. One of the forces in Chicago actively working towards dismantling the criminal justice system is an organization run and lead by students.
Read MoreVIDEO: On June 28, the Chicago Urban League hosted their first inaugural educational forum. “The Stories We Tell: A Forum on African-American Narratives” was geared towards their Race and Equity Initiative.
Read MoreVIDEO: Hip hop dance has been rapidly gaining popularity in recent years, largely due to the advent of omnipresent social media.
Read MoreVIDEO: North Lawndale was a booming economic hub of Chicago in the early 1900s when the community was filled with major businesses including Sears Roebuck and Western Electric. Overtime, as demographics changed, Sears and other businesses left the neighborhood and poverty levels began to increase.
Read MoreVIDEO: Chicago’s black and brown neighborhoods are depicted and looked at as dangerous. Lacking work programs, positive resources for the youth and community at large, many outsiders looking in only get a small glimpse of what is really happening.
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