South Side Weekly

Do you think Chicago has enough sports and recreational spaces? In survey responses, youth and parents told the Weekly the South Side needs more—and better maintenance of existing ones.

✍️ Jewél Jackson
https://southsideweekly.com/south-west-siders-want-more-indoor-sports-facilities-for-youth/

Darkly Comic Black Cypress Bayou Leans Into Haunting Ancestral Pain In Definition Theatre’s production, playwright Kristen Adele Calhoun and director Ericka Ratcliff unpack generational trauma and a whodunit conspiracy that leaves audiences reeling.

Playwright Kristen Adele Calhoun and director Ericka Ratcliff unpack generational trauma and a whodunit conspiracy that leaves audiences reeling.

Sarah Luyengi's review of Black Cypress Bayou:
https://southsideweekly.com/darkly-comic-black-cypress-bayou-leans-into-haunting-ancestral-pain/

Have you taken our reader survey yet? Share your feedback and enter our raffle for a chance to win a $100 gift card, a free annual South Side Weekly subscription, or a portrait illustration ⬇️

https://medill.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_56mmWo3Om9X6WEu

March 17 Primary Election: How to Register and Vote Key dates, ID requirements, and voting locations for the March 17 primary election. A breakdown of who can vote, how to register, and where to cast a ballot.

Confused about voting? This breakdown covers who can vote, how to register, where to cast a ballot, key dates, ID requirements and more ahead of the March 17 primary election.

✍️ Chelsea Zhao
https://southsideweekly.com/march-17-primary-election-how-to-register-and-vote/

March 17 Primary Election: How to Register and Vote Key dates, ID requirements, and voting locations for the March 17 primary election. A breakdown of who can vote, how to register, and where to cast a ballot.

Confused about voting? This breakdown covers who can vote, how to register, where to cast a ballot, key dates, ID requirements and more ahead of the March 17 primary election.

✍️ Chelsea Zhao
https://southsideweekly.com/march-17-primary-election-how-to-register-and-vote/

SSW 02.26.26

“Our father was a servant leader—not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world."

In our latest print issue, Max Blaisdell takes us through the life and legacy of Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.
https://issuu.com/southsideweekly/docs/ssw_02.26.26

South Side Tours Delivers History on the Move South Side Tours uses narration, local insight, and landmark stops to highlight the people and places that define Chicago’s South Side.

Angela Dugan sat down with the Weekly to invite us into her moving oral history project on wheels. South Side Tours uses narration, local insight, and landmarks to highlight the people and places that define the South Side.

https://southsideweekly.com/south-side-tours-delivers-history-on-the-move/

We’ve partnered with Medill’s local News Accelerator to better understand who our readers are and how we can better serve the South Side. Take our survey today!

https://medill.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_56mmWo3Om9X6WEu

With more than twenty years of musical history behind them, Enjambre returns with its unmistakable sense of nostalgia in the band’s upcoming studio album set to release next month.

✍️ Jocelyn Martinez Rosales
https://southsideweekly.com/mexican-band-enjambre-brings-romantic-rock-back-to-chicago/

“I see more community, love, support, and that’s what I was hoping to see,”

Supporters rally outside A Cup of Joe after the café was targeted for speaking out against ICE. Reporting by José Abonce
https://southsideweekly.com/neighbors-rally-for-a-cup-of-joe/

SSW 02.12.26

South Side bus tours, Archer ave. bike lanes tension, sports roundup and more in our latest print issue!

Read it online: https://issuu.com/southsideweekly/docs/ssw_02.12.26
Pick up a print copy near you: https://bit.ly/ssw-distro

South Side Weekly and Build Coffee & Books presents Third Thursdays, a free monthly open mic and writing workshop! Join us this Thursday, February 19th at 6:30PM 📝

RSVP here:
https://bit.ly/4tsOy1V?r=qr

Archer Ave Bike Lanes Tension Fuels Political Ambitions A redesign of Archer Avenue in Brighton Park, intended to improve safety and accessibility along one of the Southwest Side’s busiest corridors, has become a flashpoint for community debate and political tension. The project, part of the city’s Complete Streets Program, has been underway for several months and includes bike lanes protected from the flow […]

A redesign of Archer Avenue in Brighton Park, intended to improve safety and accessibility along one of the Southwest Side’s busiest corridors, has become a flashpoint for community debate and political tension.

https://southsideweekly.com/archer-ave-bike-lanes-tension-fuels-political-ambitions/

The Exchange: Roach The Exchange, the Weekly’s poetry corner, offers our thoughts in exchange for yours.

"Even on the worst day of my life
I am still alive—a fact that some despise so much they hope to change it.
Just before the night consumes me, I survive out of spite."

Our poetry corner is back! Read the latest poem and prompt in The Exchange ⬇️
https://southsideweekly.com/the-exchange-roach/

CityKey ID is meant to provide access but some Chicagoans say they face barriers and discrimination. For immigrants, the uncertainty around whether an ID will be accepted can compound an already heightened sense of anxiety.

✍️ Alma Campos
https://southsideweekly.com/when-keys-to-the-city-dont-work/

Mama African Marketplace Forced to Move Mama African Marketplace, the beloved South Side community anchor, will be missed by local youth, families, and vendors.

Mama African Marketplace Forced to Move : The beloved South Side community anchor will relocate to Greater Grand Crossing.

Story by Jewél Jackson
https://southsideweekly.com/mama-african-marketplace-forced-to-move/

Chicago Poet Laureate Mayda del Valle reflects on her journey from the South Side to Broadway and beyond.

Explore her conversation with E'mon Lauren, Chicago’s first Youth Poet Laureate.
https://southsideweekly.com/the-roots-of-poetry/

Jury Acquits Chicago Resident of Murder-for-Hire Plot on Border Patrol Commander The defendant, Juan Espinoza Martinez, was detained by immigration agents after being found not guilty and faces deportation.

Jury Acquits Chicago Resident of Murder-for-Hire Plot on Border Patrol Commander: Juan Espinoza Martinez was detained and faces deportation after being found not guilty.

✍️ Dave Byrnes
https://southsideweekly.com/jury-acquits-chicago-resident-of-murder-for-hire-plot-on-border-patrol-commander/

“When they walked off the field, everybody stood up and gave them a standing ovation.”

On the cover of our latest print issue, Malachi Hayes dives into the start of something special for Bears fans.

Illustration by David Alvarado 🎨
https://issuu.com/southsideweekly/docs/ssw_01.29.26

Sentido Builds Space for Latino Joy and Survival The pop-up series partnered with Little Village’s Carnitas Uruapan for its fourteenth event

End your week on a high note by reading about Sentidos, a roving pop-up event that hosts local musicians and DJs in Latino-owned businesses as an act of joyful, community-building defiance.

Until December 31, you can double your impact with #Newsmatch, which will match any donation up to $15,000. Every donation, big or tiny (and especially recurring donations) help us do this work.

This project was co-produced with @blockclubchi.bsky.social, @invisible.institute, @thetriibe.com, Cicero Independiente, and the Investigative Project on Race & Equity.

Feds Used Chemical Agents Dozens of Times in Chicago An investigation by reporters from six newsrooms found that agents used chemical irritants nearly 50 times during Operation Midway Blitz.

Several Chicago newsrooms spent two months collecting and analyzing evidence of ICE & Border Patrol's use of tear gas and pepper spray in Chicago.

They found that agents deployed chemical agents nearly 50 times. Most uses occurred after a judge ordered federal agents to restrict their use.

Screenshot of Rachel Maddow Show clip that shows headline and excerpt of a South Side Weekly article “911 Audio Shows South Shore Residents’ Panic During ICE Raid.” Excerpt: “Agents stormed 7500 S. South Shore Dr. in the early morning hours of September 30. Dozens of heavily armed FBI, ICE, and Border Patrol agents swarmed the block as others rappelled from a Black Hawk helicopter. Once inside, agents broke into apartments, threw concussion grenades, and zip-tied dozens of residents—including small children—before separating people by race.”

South Side Weekly’s reporting on the South Shore raid was featured on @maddow.bsky.social yesterday! (Story link in thread)

I’m grateful to share I received two awards from the Chicago Journalists Association this year: First Place in Immigration Coverage, & Second Place for the Dorothy Stork Award. Thank you to the Chicago Journalists Association and an amazing team @southsideweekly.bsky.social

Key Council Committee Rejects Mayor’s Budget On Monday, the Finance Committee voted the budget down by a margin of 25-10.

Mayor Johnson's proposed budget failed to advance from the Finance Committee on Monday by a vote of 25–10.

CJA Names 2025 Dorothy Storck Award Finalists and Ceremony Emcee - Chicago Journalists Association Alma Campos, Brandis Friedman and Shia Kapos have been named finalists for the Chicago Journalists Association’s Dorothy Storck Award.

And our immigration editor Alma Campos is also a finalist for the Dorothy Storck award, which will also be announced at tonight's event.

Please join us in congratulating these journalists, and all the great nominees!

chicagojournalists.net/2025/10/27/c...

Sunny skies bring big smiles to South Shore rodeo As young riders groomed their horses ahead of the Broken Arrow Riding Club’s annual Speed and Action Rodeo on a sunny Sunday morning earlier this month, hundreds of showgoers eagerly

Our sister publication Hyde Park Herald's photographer Marc Monaghan was also a finalist for photography of South Side cowboys.
www.hpherald.com/evening_dige...

ShotSpotter Routinely Missed Reported Shootings, City Data Shows In a recent 20-month period, more than 20% of shootings and reckless discharges in Chicago’s coverage area had no corresponding ShotSpotter alert.

Jim Daley and Max Blaisdell, together with Type Investigations' Ethan Corey, are also finalists for their data-heavy analysis of ShotSpotter, which showed that the gunshot detection company routinely missed reported shootings.

southsideweekly.com/shotspotter-...

No Due Process: Inside ICE’s Deceptive Arrests in Chicago On June 4, ICE agents arrested a community organizer and mother, Gladis Yolanda Chavez Pineda along with at least nine others in Chicago’s South Loop. A petition urging her release has drawn over 10,0...

Alma Campos, Jacqueline Serrato, and José Abonce are finalists in the Immigration category for stories about where people go when ICE arrests them and how Chicago communities mobilized this year to resist ICE.
southsideweekly.com/no-due-proce...