1. 75 Women Have Been Strangled or Smothered in Chicago Since 2001. Most of Their Killers Got Away
Is there a serial killer at work? The police say no–in which case, 51 murderers got away with it. The Tribune investigates.
2. Studs Terkel’s 1963 Train Ride to Washington
When 800 Chicagoans went to see Martin Luther King, Jr. at the March on Washington, the legendary radio man joined them. WBEZ plays his story from the trip.
3. Why Field Notes Have Remained Curiously Addictive for a Decade
Beginning with a designer’s holiday present to friends, a Chicago company has built a business off of little pocket notebooks. Chicago magazine talks with their makers.
4. Divvy’s Top Rider of 2017 Pedaled 6,000 Miles While Making Food Deliveries
Why does he use the slow shared bikes? Not having to worry about theft or maintenance is worth the lumbering three-speeds. The Reader profies Kerdia Roland.
5. Southern Illinois’s Sins of the Past Hold Lessons for the Future
Chicago’s history in (and conflicts with) the civil-rights movement are well known, but small downstate Cairo was a crucial battleground as well. The Southern Illinoisan recounts its past.
6. The Chicago Freedom Movement’s Quest for Economic Justice
Why did the civil rights movement go north from the segregated south? For a much more complex fight. The Chicago Reporter looks back.
7. Facing a Mental Health Care System Gutted by Mayor Emanuel, Chicagoans Are Funding Their Own Clinics
Residents of four West Side neighborhoods voluntarily raised their property taxes by $4 for every $1,000 to start a free community mental health center. Belt Magazine previews the West Side Expanded Mental Health Services Program.
8. ‘Moneyball’: The 2018 Illinois Governor’s Race
If J.B. Pritzker wins the Democratic nomination—and he’s already spent $15 million on it—two candidates with essentially unlimited money could create the most expensive governor’s race ever. NPR Illinois examines the possibility.
9. Should Sears Become a “Tech” Company? They Already Tried That
In the 1980s the retailer created Prodigy, a dialup service that predicted much of what the internet would be today. Chicago magazine explains.
10. How Developers Are Rebuilding Affordable Units 20 Years After Chicago Began to Dismantle Its Public Housing
Cabrini-Green has been "a space of displacement, and more often than not, neglect" since the early 20th century. Can mixed-income housing fit in? The Architect’s Newspaper looks at a new development.