Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

1 week ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

A new report out Tuesday tackles the yawning wealth gap between Black and white Chicagoans, laying out a set of potential solutions for bridging it, including increased homeownership, enhanced workforce and business development and universal financial literacy training. “The State of Black Chicago 2025: A Laddered Path to Wealth Building” focuses heavily on a key data point from a report by The New School’s Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy.

2 weeks ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

Shaq Wilson is a 30-year-old father of two living on the West Side. He works for the Maersk shipping and logistics company and just bought a new car. “I feel like I’m in a good place,” he said. “I feel like the place that I’m in, I could grow, and that’s a wonderful thing.”But as a teenager about 14 years ago, he was in a more vulnerable spot.

3 weeks ago | wbez.org | Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

Shaq Wilson is a 30-year-old father of two living on Chicago’s West Side. He works for the Maersk shipping and logistics company and just bought a new car. “I feel like I’m in a good place,” he said. “I feel like the place that I’m in, I could grow, and that’s a wonderful thing.”But as a teenager about 14 years ago, he was in a more vulnerable spot.

3 weeks ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

El mejor lugar para cobertura de noticias y cultura latina en Chicago. | The place for coverage of Latino news and culture in Chicago. En Mad Mike’s Barber Shop, en el vecindario de La Villita en Chicago, Ismael Acuña Jaimez da los últimos retoques al cabello de un cliente mientras una pantalla de televisión reproduce “Ford vs. Ferrari” doblada al español. Acuña Jaimez ha dirigido esta barbería con sus padres durante unos 12 años en este vecindario predominantemente mexicano e inmigrante.

4 weeks ago | chicago.suntimes.com | Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

At Mad Mike’s Barber Shop in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, Ismael Acuña Jaimez puts the finishing touches on a customer’s hair while a TV screen plays “Ford Vs. Ferrari” dubbed in Spanish. Acuña Jaimez has run this shop with his parents for about 12 years in this predominantly Latino and immigrant neighborhood. He said there was less foot traffic in front of the barbershop during the first couple of months of the year, but business has picked up recently.