217 Today: Feeding migrants in Chicago involves balancing nutrition, cost and taste

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Chef Jesus Finol prepares a steak arepa at Sabe a Zulia, a Venezuelan restaurant in Chicago. Restaurant co-owner Gerardo Abreu volunteered to help feed the first groups of migrants arriving in the city in 2022. He says they figured out how to cook food that migrants want to eat on a budget, but the city has had some challenges doing the same in its shelters.
  • Photo: Manuel Martinez / WBEZ

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Today’s headlines:

  • Two members of the Illinois Prisoner Review Board – including its chair – have resigned after a convicted felon released on parole allegedly murdered a child hours after his release.
  • The Champaign Unit 4 school board ended its meeting early last night when two of five remaining members walked out.
  • As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to decide the case of medical abortion, Democratic Senator Dick Durbin says he believes the pending case is a political play.
  • A local animal shelter is teaming up with an online platform to help animals avoid shelters entirely.

In today’s deep dive, we’ll learn more about how Chicago has been figuring out how to feed thousands of migrants over the last year and a half.

217 Today is produced by Stephanie Mosqueda. Reporting contributed by Alex Degman, Jade Marceau, Emily Hays, John Shay and Adriana Cardona Maguigad.

 

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Stephanie Mosqueda

Stephanie Mosqueda is a senior majoring in journalism at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with minors in Spanish and public relations. She is the 217 Today producer and a reporter for the Illinois Student Newsroom.