Illinois Public Media News

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments about whether it’s legal to fire someone for being gay or transgender. Plus, Native Americans in the Midwest helped black men, women and children escape slavery through the Underground Railroad. We spoke about why that history is often overlooked. And, a Champaign-Urbana organization is celebrating its fifth annual Black Girl Genius Week through art, music and workshops.

The photos or videos you store in “the cloud” aren’t actually up in the air. They’re in computer systems housed in hundreds of vast buildings across the country. Illinois is now providing tax breaks for companies that build those centers in the hopes of attracting more of them.

The city of Fairview Heights in southwestern Illinois has drawn national attention for the stealthily built Planned Parenthood Clinic that will open there later this month.

Ozone is an air pollutant that forms when emissions from cars, power plants and other sources chemically react in the presence of sunlight. The highly reactive molecule is hazardous to human health and can also harm plants by hindering photosynthesis in plant leaves. New research from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign reveals that certain maize varieties are more susceptible than others to damage caused by rising ozone levels.

A new Planned Parenthood clinic in Illinois, near the Missouri border, is opening in order to accommodate more abortion patients from out of state. We’ll talk about why its construction was kept secret. Plus, climate change is affecting Americans right now, it’s also taking a toll on our mental health. Mental health professionals are starting to hear more patients talk about how the changing climate worries them. And, what you do in your garden now can make a big difference come springtime. The experts will join us to give their tips and tricks for the most effective fall gardening.