The Culture of Chicago IL

Chicago is a great place for people from all over the world to gather and create. It has a rich cultural history that is seen in every aspect of the city – from cuisine, to attractions and entertainment. This is a city that continues to encourage new immigrants to come and bring their culture to the area. On a warm day you can walk the streets and hear music from all around the globe - Bachata, rap, or any genre of music that you can think of. Restaurants that serve different types of food - Hawaiian, Mexican, Italian and more - line the streets and beckon you in with wonderful smells. Professional legal representation for car accidents.

Chicago IL has a rich and diverse history that can be traced back to the beginning of recorded time in the region. The arrival of French explorers, missionaries and fur traders in the late 17th Century and their interaction with Pottawatomie Native Americans marked the start of the Chicago area's documented history. By the 19th Century, the city had become a major industrial center with its stockyards and shipping facilities.

Nationwide social upheavals in the early 20th Century prompted a large wave of African American migrants to Chicago. They brought with them a dynamic cultural community that gave birth to Chicago's version of jazz and blues. Tensions between the newcomers and city's established Irish, Polish and German ethnic groups led to racial violence that culminated in the eight-day race riot of 1919.

The urbanization of Chicago in the later part of the 1900s triggered the creation of ethnic neighborhoods that reflect the diversity of the city's population. As a result, today's Chicago is known as one of the most multicultural cities in North America.

During this period, the city also witnessed rapid economic expansion. Its prosperity was based on its central location within an expanding inland transportation network that was anchored by railroads and incredible lake traffic. This rapid growth was accompanied by rising economic inequality as foreign-born immigrants surpassed native-born residents in numbers and abject poverty contrasted with spectacular affluence.

Chicago's unique culture is celebrated nationally and internationally. The city's renowned museums and galleries, theater district and live blues scene are internationally acclaimed. But the city's creativity and culture extends well beyond these areas, from rural artists' studios to neighborhood cultural attractions. The map above shows a color-coded list of the city's diverse neighborhoods. It highlights those communities in which at least half of the residents earn 80% or less of their area's median income, as defined by the Illinois Low-Income Housing Trust Fund (ILSFA). If you have questions about these communities, please contact ILSFA.

 

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Chicago, IL 60601
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