These highways displaced many Black communities. Some Black activists are using mapping to do the opposite: highlight hidden parts of history.
Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division
An obscure Mexican engraver named José Guadalupe Posada created the satirical skull in the early 1900s and sold it for a penny. But after he died, it took on a life of its own.
Race car drivers compete in full-body safety gear while sitting in a piping hot car, which puts tremendous strain on the heart.
Grant Halverson/Getty Images for NASCAR
Imagine an NBA game played outdoors in August, with no substitutions and players wearing snowsuits, gloves and ski masks. Race car drivers routinely compete under similar conditions.
Charging at home is more convenient for apartment dwellers, too.
Westend61 via Getty Images
Illinois passed the latest law requiring new apartment buildings to be wired for EV chargers. Now apartment communities are figuring out the best ways to make shared charging work for everyone.
A street mural by Manuel Acevedo at Halsey Place in Newark, N.J.
Anthony Alvarez
Chronic stress from living with systemic racism and gun violence can lead to increased symptoms of PTSD and depression as well as elevated cortisol levels.
Today’s low-income housing developments, like this one in St. Louis, are of a much higher quality than those of the past.
AP Photo/Jeff Roberson
The concentration of subsidized low-income housing developments isn’t as bad as residents fear: It actually increases property values – at a faster rate than other neighborhoods.
Till-Mobley watches the body of her son, Emmett, being lowered into his grave.
Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images
Examining how COVID-19 lockdowns and stay-at-home orders were implemented in Toronto, Johannesburg and Chicago reveals the impact they had on vulnerable communities.
When schools shut down to prevent the spread of COVID-19, moms took on the burden of supporting students at home.
AP Photo/Shafkat Anowar
A dispute between the Chicago Teachers Union and the school district over in-person learning has resulted in classes being canceled. An education policy expert explains what is at stake.
It’s been 10 years since Chief Keef became an internet famous rapper with the song ‘Bang.’
Johnny Nunez/WireImage via Getty Images
The police, the media and politicians have long objected Chief Keef’s ties to gang violence. But the rapper wrote the playbook for using social media to make a career out of music.
Shelter-in-place measures have made it more difficult for victims of domestic violence to escape from their abusers.
Elizabeth Livermore/Moment via Getty Images
A change in how witnesses, victims and authorities respond to domestic violence reports paired with limited social services placed victims in a vulnerable position during the pandemic.
Air conditioning cools city residents during heat waves, but also strains the power grid and fuels climate change.
Joanna Poe/Flickr
Climate change is making extreme weather events, both hot and cold, more frequent across the Great Lakes region. Weatherizing low-income residents’ homes is an important way to prepare.
Chicago’s teachers say they are seeking a better deal for their students too.
AP Photo/Teresa Crawford
Research suggests that kids benefit when there are fewer of them in a classroom. But quickly reducing class size can cause new problems as schools scramble to hire new teachers.
A team photograph of the 1919 Chicago White Sox squad, many of whom would be implicated in throwing that year’s World Series.
Heritage Auctions
Up until the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, gambling and baseball had a marriage of convenience. A century later, gambling is again being seen as a solution to the sport’s woes.
Detroit People’s Food Co-op, opening later this year in a food desert, is an example of a community-driven project.
DPFC
Prodded by Michelle Obama and other government leaders, Walmart and other major US retailers vowed to build hundreds of stores in food deserts. What happened?
Contact with nature reduces stress and aggression, one reason scholars say urban green space may reduce violence.
Shutterstock
Some parks reduce violence in the local vicinity. Other parks attract crime. The difference has to do with how these urban green spaces are designed, programmed and managed, experts say.
Airbnb is a growing threat to the major hotel chains.
Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock.com