Columbus
Borderless Magazine
Resource Guides for Immigrants in Chicago
From food assistance to mental health support, we compiled all of our resource guides in one place. Moving to a new country can be overwhelming. That’s why Borderless Magazine created our resource guides to help immigrants living in Chicago find everything from free food and coats to lawyers who can help them with their immigration cases.
The Revival of Chicago’s Filipino American Rizal Center
Leile Uy and Dely Dreyvilla share a moment during a pause in the line dancing festivities at the kapihan in the Rizal Center on March 13th, 2024. Inside the walls of the unassuming, tan-brick Rizal Center on Irving Park Road, a pristine wooden floor supports the weight of dozens of Filipino seniors as they dance, sing and share food for the twice-monthly kapihan, or coffee hour.
Chicago Officials Confirm TB Cases at Migrant Shelters
The cases add to the mounting concerns about health conditions at the city’s migrant shelters following the death of a 5-year-old and an outbreak of measles cases. Chicago officials have confirmed a “small number” of tuberculosis cases at city-run migrant shelters Wednesday afternoon — once again raising concerns about health conditions at temporary emergency shelter facilities.
Harmony in Hardship: Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Refugees Bring Immigrant Stories to Life with Music
Civic fellows with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra meet with participants from the Chicago Refugee Coalition on March 2, 2024, to collaborate on musical pieces. Faiza Haider grew up in Kenya. One of her fondest childhood memories was her nighttime drives, listening to Bollywood music with her father in the undeveloped...
Chicago Ordinance Would Require Weekly Reports on Migrant Shelter Evictions
Aldermen Andre Vasquez, Chair of the Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights, leads a meeting to discuss a new ordinance to increase transparency regarding migrant shelter stays that passed on March 28, 2024. Chicago’s Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights passed a measure on Thursday that would require city departments...
U.S. Immigration Application Fees Increase Next Month. Here’s What You Should Know
The Chicago field offfice of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will increase fees for some immigration and naturalization applications next month — the first fee hike since 2016. These changes, which go into effect on April 1, include new rules for waiver eligibility, additional exemptions and significant increases in price for certain forms like the application for lawful residence, working permits, and travel permits.
Hilco Must Pay Little Village Residents $12.25 Million Settlement Over Botched Implosion
The shuttered Crawford Generating Station is seen alongside the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal on January 9, 2020, three months before a botched implosion of a smokestack covered the Little Village neighborhood in dust. Nearly four years ago, Little Village homes and streets were blanketed in dust after a botched...
Migrants Navigate State’s Apartment Program On Their Own As Evictions Loom and Help Runs Dry
CHICAGO — On the Far South Side, sunlight streamed into the west-facing windows of Edwin’s apartment as he remembered his months-long journey from Venezuela. “It was difficult, I won’t deny,” said Edwin, who asked not to use his last name. Edwin left his home country facing...
How a Chicago Nonprofit Creates Community To Empower Middle Eastern and Arab Women
Muntaha Alhindi and Doha Lahlah chat in MIRA’s office in West Ridge ahead of the women empowerment session on Feb. 21, 2024. Lahlah is Syrian and lived in Jordan before arriving in the U.S. in 2020 during the COVID pandemic with her husband and two kids. Doha Lahlah still...
CDC to Help Chicago After 4 Cases of Measles at Largest Migrant Shelter
Four cases of measles were confirmed at Chicago’s largest migrant shelter in Pilsen. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are supporting the city’s response after four cases of measles inside Chicago’s largest migrant shelter were confirmed this month. The confirmed cases were two small children...
Chicago’s Largest Migrant Shelter in Quarantine After Measles Case: ‘We Are Worried’
Migrants living in Chicago’s largest shelter, located in the Pilsen industrial corridor, are being quarantined after a reported measles case. Just months after a five-year-old boy from Chicago’s largest migrant shelter fell sick and died, the city is quarantining residents after a young child contracted measles. Chicago’s Department...
Threats, ‘Abuse’ and No Pay: What Chicago Migrants Face When Looking for Work
City Bureau’s Civic Reporting fellows and senior reporter Sarah Conway speak with asylum-seekers at Concord Missionary Baptist Church on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024. This story was originally published in City Bureau. They’re eager to work. They bring a host of skills and experience, including in higher education, banking, construction...
7 Things Migrants Should Know About Upcoming Shelter Evictions
For several months, Chicago’s shelter system has been mired in controversy. Dozens of migrants described inhumane conditions before a five-year-old boy died of sepsis at the city’s largest shelter. Despite the harsh conditions, migrants have relied on the shelter system to provide temporary housing as they navigate asylum and work permit applications.
Investigation: Chicago Ignored Dozens of Warnings of Migrant Shelter Conditions Before Child’s Death
People hang out in front of Chicago’s largest migrant shelter in Pilsen on Feb. 23, 2024. A little over two months ago, five-year-old Jean Carlos Martinez Rivero died after falling ill while staying at the packed city-run shelter. Two pink socks and one tan sweater. That was all five-year-old...
Where to Find Free, or Low-Cost Mental Health Support in Chicago
New arrivals are experiencing mental health issues as they struggle to navigate unstable housing and federal backlog in asylum and workout permit applications. Amid the ongoing migrant crisis, new arrivals are experiencing various mental health issues stemming, in part, from a traumatic journey to the United States. The mental health struggles have been exacerbated by unstable housing, a backlog of work permit applications, and a general uncertainty about the path forward.
What Cicero and Stickney Residents Need to Know About the Koppers Coal Tar Plant
Koppers is a chemical plant on the south side of Pershing Road, on the border between Cicero and Stickney. The plant opened in 1922 and has operated in Cicero for more than 100 years. It converts crude tar waste from steel production and petroleum refining into refined tar, chemical oils and creosote — a sticky, yellow liquid which is oftentimes used as a preservative to treat wood against termites, fungi and other pests.
Koppers disputes most recent environmental violations but plant records reveal two decades of run-ins with Illinois EPA
After the Illinois EPA sent them a lengthy violations notice last fall, Koppers executives began selling stock at an unprecedented rate. After MuckRock and the Cicero Independiente reported on those violations, the publicly-traded company hired a crisis communications firm to meet with elected officials and manage the community fallout. Aerial...
State Board Halts Plan For Second Waste Station In West Chicago
Lakeshore Recycling Systems’ application to open a controversial waste station in West Chicago was recently denied. The state pollution board halted a controversial plan for a second waste station after the company failed to adequately notify a neighboring property in West Chicago. Sign up for our free newsletter. Last...
Oak Park volunteers search for housing solutions amid migrant crisis
The extended Marquez family, from left, Josemith Marquez, 7, Milagros Marquez, 45, Jose Marquez, 39, Amisaday Marquez, 12 and Meison Barraez, 24, pose for a portrait in the dining room of their new home in Forest Park, IL on January 23, 2024. A dim light shines through the frost-tinged dining...
Chicago Aldermen Push For Accountability Amid Complaints of Mistreatment at Migrant Shelters
A line to enter Chicago’s largest migrant shelter in Pilsen. Wednesday, December 20, 2023. The Chicago mayor’s office and Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) fielded questions about the staffing company overseeing the migrant shelters, with aldermen concerned that complaints about mistreatment from staffers are being ignored.
Borderless Magazine
427+
Posts
2M+
Views
Borderless Magazine NFP is a nonprofit news outlet that is reimagining immigration journalism for a more just and equitable future.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.