Blog

On Tuesday morning, October 31st, John Hagedorn died peacefully in his home with his family at his side. We deeply mourn the loss of our dear friend and colleague. John had a long-time affiliation with the Great Cities Institute and in 2016 was given the official title at the Institute of James J. Stukel Senior Faculty Fellow. He was also Professor Emeritus from the Department of Criminology, Law, and Justice. We offer our deepest condolences to his wife, Mary, and to his family. We will miss John beyond words, but we will never forget him. May he rest in peace.

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This report briefly outlines the evidence that U.S. economic warfare against three specific countries – Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua – is a significant cause of the latest migration surge. It argues, furthermore, that progressive U.S. leaders and the general public should advocate for a more humane and responsible foreign policy – one that could not only dramatically reduce migration from the region but also address the mushrooming labor shortage within the U.S.

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On October 11, 2023, Mayor Brandon Johnson delivered his $16.6 billion budget recommendations for the City of Chicago to the City Council. In July, the City of Chicago Office of Budget Management (OBM), the Mayor’s Office of Community Engagement, and the Office of Equity and Racial Justice (OERJ) partnered with UIC’s Neighborhoods Initiative (UICNI) at the Great Cities Institute to co-design and conduct engagement activities around the City’s 2024 budget. The “City of Chicago 2024 Budget Engagement Report” documents the 2024 budget engagement process and provides critical results from the engagement activities.

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Juan González, Senior Fellow at Great Cities Institute, Co-Host of Democracy Now, and Author of Harvest of Empire will headline the launch of GCI’s Latino Research Initiative on September 12, 2023, from 8:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at Student Center East Room 301 (750 S. Halsted). In Juan’s speech, he will bring a national and international context to his reflections on issues and opportunities facing Latinos in Chicagoland.

Here is the Link to RSVP.

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Brandon Johnson’s election this past April as Chicago’s new mayor has been hailed across the country as an electrifying victory by progressive Democrats. But a detailed analysis of vote tallies and turnout conducted by Juan González and Matthew Wilson of the Great Cities Institute finds “a startling gap in voter turnout continues to persist along racial and ethnic lines” in Chicago.

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Great Cities, with several of its partners, has released eight reports over the last month on topics including empowerment of women experiencing domestic abuse, a statewide profile of groups doing racial equity work, impacts of COVID on youth joblessness, conditions affecting immigrant communities, neighborhood profiles on Pilsen and Puerto Rico Town, and water recycling.

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It’s been a while since you have heard from us, but we think of you often as we busily work with partners on an array of projects. In the coming weeks, we will catch you up on some of what we have been doing over the last few months.

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Originally developed as an index to compare the economic disparities between the suburbs and inner cities, the Great Cities Institute utilized the methodology and applied it to Chicago community areas.

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