Curious City is spending time in West Ridge. What questions do you have about the neighborhood?
Over the next few months, the Curious City team will be asking West Ridge residents what stories they want to see covered about their community.
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WBEZ’s Curious City series is an ongoing news experiment at WBEZ, online and on the radio dial around Chicago at 91.5 FM. Our mission is to include the public in editorial decision-making, make journalism more transparent and strengthen multimedia coverage about Chicago, the surrounding region and its people (past or present).
Curious City airs on Thursdays during All Things Considered on WBEZ
Recent
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De Venezuela a Chicago, la historia de una migrante que vuelve a empezar
Carolina Sandoval estaba en uno de los primeros autobuses que llegaron de Texas a Chicago el otoño pasado. No ha sido fácil, pero las cosas son aún más difíciles para los migrantes que llegan hoy en …
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Listen — 4:56Who are ‘community navigators’ and how do they help their neighbors?
In West Ridge, Farhat Khatoon and Waniya Zahid help their neighbors get connected to health care, legal support and other social services.
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Listen — 4:34From Venezuela to Chicago, one migrant’s story of starting over
Carolina Sandoval was on one of the first buses that arrived in Chicago from Texas last fall. It hasn’t been easy — but things are even more difficult for migrants arriving today.
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Listen — 25:18A short statue in Chicago with big importance for labor history
Samuel Gompers fought for the eight-hour workday and helped create child labor laws. But for all he achieved, he was also fiercely anti-immigrant.
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Listen — 22:17What is Swedish egg coffee?
The drink became known as “church basement coffee,” because it was typically served at Swedish churches in the Midwest.
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Listen — 16:27Everything we learned about Chicago beer history in a night of drinking at Carol’s Pub
On April 12, Curious City teamed up with the Chicago Brewseum to learn all about the city’s long history of tavern and beer culture.
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Listen — 33:11Who gets married at Chicago Marriage Court?
Marriage and Civil Union Court in downtown Chicago might be dimly lit, but love and romance light it up each day.
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The owner of the Avalon Regal Theater makes progress on his dream of reopening the venue
Jerald Gary, who purchased the theater in 2014, met an important deadline last month to maintain ownership of the historic building.
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Listen — 4:07What’s the history of drag performance in Chicago?
Since the 1890s, drag has been a fixture of Chicago’s nightlife and entertainment scene. The legacy of diversity, experimentation and community carries on today.
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Listen — 36:41
