Jennifer White
Tracy Lett’s play, Bug, is a story of love, loss and paranoia. The production is now on stage at Steppenwolf Theatre through March 15. Reset sits down with Carrie Coon, the lead actress of the play.
This week, Gov. JB Pritzker laid out his priorities for his second year in office. A former state senator pleaded guilty to charges of bribery and tax evasion. Plus, the spring legislative session is underway in Springfield, and the coronavirus finds its second Illinois victim. Reset breaks down the biggest local and state stories of the week in WBEZ’s Friday News Roundup with host Jenn White.
In her new book Indebted, New York University professor Caitlin Zaloom takes a look at how the pressure of rising college costs has transformed life for middle-class families. The economic anthropologist joins Reset to discuss her new book and more.
Lightfoot fielded questions from Chicagoans about the ongoing teachers strike and her budget plan for next year. Here’s what she had to say.
Poet Saeed Jones talks about his new memoir How We Fight For Our Lives. In the book, he recounts what it was like growing up young, black and gay and describes how he fought to carve out a space in the world to claim for himself. GUEST: Saeed Jones, poet, author of How We Fight For Our Lives
The sixth annual Lit and Luz Festival of language, literature and art brings together nearly 40 artists, musicians and writers from Chicago and Mexico for a cultural exchange. Reset talks to two organizers about this festival, which runs through Saturday at venues across the city. GUESTS: Sarah Dodson, managing director of the Lit and Luz Festival Libia Bianibi, artistic associate
Crime on the “L” is up and low-income African-American neighborhoods continue to receive the majority of bike tickets. Mary Wisniewski of the Chicago Tribune joins Morning Shift with the latest on those transportation stories and more. GUEST: Mary Wisniewski, transportation reporter and columnist at the Chicago Tribune LEARN MORE: Serious crime has doubled on Chicago’s ‘L’ system, despite the CTA adding thousands of security cameras (Chicago Tribune 9/19/19)
A college education can greatly improve socioeconomic mobility. In The Years That Matter Most: How College Makes Or Breaks Us, journalist Paul Tough examines the many barriers to higher education for low income and minority students. Morning Shift sat down with Tough for more on his new book. GUEST: Paul Tough, journalist and author LEARN MORE: The Years That Matter Most: How College Makes Or Breaks Us
Chicagoans who drive for rideshare companies are being suspended from those jobs because the city says they owe fines for everything from parking tickets to uncut weeds. Morning Shift digs into the story of the more than 15,000 people have been impacted by the policy so far.
There are changes coming to the CTA and Divvy is expanding to the South Side of Chicago. Chicago Tribune reporter and columnist Mary Wisniewski joins Morning Shift to explain those stories and bring us the latest transportation news. GUESTS: Mary Wisniewski, transportation reporter and columnist at the Chicago Tribune LEARN MORE: To help pregnant women get a seat on the CTA, a Chicago company is rolling out ‘Baby on Board’ buttons(Chicago Tribune 9/6/19) The biggest job in CTA history: $2.1 billion Red-Purple Line project starts this fall (Chicago Tribune 9/6/19)
Last year writer, scholar and prison abolitionist Mariame Kaba released her book Lifting As They Climbed: Mapping A History Of Black Women On Chicago’s South Side. The book — which Kaba co-wrote with communications expert and organizer Essence McDowell — is described as a “self-guided tour,” but now Kaba is back in town from New York to lead a real tour of some of the sites and women she’s profiled in person. Morning Shift talks with Mariame Kaba about Lifting As They Climbed, her work around prison abolition and restorative justice and much more. GUEST: Mariame Kaba, scholar, activist and author of Lifting As They Climbed: Mapping A History Of Black Women On Chicago’s South Side. LEARN MORE: “Lifting As They Climbed”: Mapping A History Of Black Women On Chicago’s South Side — A Self-Guided Tour (Event page) Lifting As They Climbed (Resource Page)
Last April, 31 black Chicago teens were arrested in the Loop after hundreds of them showed up downtown. In the aftermath, some people questioned the arrests saying the teens were racially profiled. Others questioned how so many teens knew to gather downtown at the same time. Morning Shift checks in with WBEZ education reporter Adriana Cardona-Maguigad about the “trends” or meetups organized on social media that lead to these large gatherings of teens.
For the past 28 years, in partnership with the Juvenile Court of Cook County, Project Lifeline has worked to provide financial assistance, mentorship, and other support services for young people who have had interactions with the juvenile justice system. The goal of the program is to help these young people earn college degrees or professional certifications that can help them establish a more promising future. Tom Schneider is the volunteer director of Project Lifeline.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot recently named the person she’s tapping to head up Chicago’s city planning. Maurice Cox will lead the planning and development department at City Hall. He moves into his new post after serving as director of planning for the city of Detroit. Morning Shift checks in with a reporter at NPR member station WDET in Detroit to learn a little more about Cox and what his new appointment could mean for Chicago.
As Chicago Public Schools gears up for the first day of classes in a few weeks, the district is facing a significant teacher shortage. That’s according to a recent WBEZ investigation that found about one in three CPS schools had at least one vacant traditional education or special education teaching position all year long. And the shortage doesn’t hit all schools equally. The problem is most prevalent in schools that serve majority black students. Morning Shift checks in with WBEZ’s Sarah Karp for more details.
On Friday night, four people were shot in the Gresham neighborhood — two of them fatally. The shooting happened at 75th Street and Stewart Avenue, a corner where the group Mothers Against Senseless Killings, or MASK, has been gathering for years in an effort to stop shootings. The two women who were killed were Chantell Grant, 26, and Andrea Stoudemire, 35. Both volunteered with MASK, and they were both mothers. Morning Shift talks to the founder of MASK about how the group will move forward and continue its mission of keeping neighborhoods safe.
Diane Latiker thought she was done raising children. She and her husband had eight kids and their youngest was on her way to college. But life had something else in store for Latiker, who is founder of Kids Off The Block, a non-profit organization that provides young people with a safe and supportive environment away from gangs, drugs, and violence. It provides them with academic and career support, counseling and more. It’s a self described, “holistic care center for prevention, personal growth, and empowerment.” Diane Latiker stops by the studio for more about her story and the continued growth of Kids Off The Block.