Year: 2026

Belmont Cragin, get ready — because the hottest free event of the Chicago summer just got even better. The International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago is thrilled to welcome Sofrito Rico, Chicago’s beloved Puerto Rican food truck, as the newest...

On July 1, Mateo Mulcahy officially took the helm as Executive Director of the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago (ILCC), stepping into the role after Founder and Executive Director Emeritus Pepe Vargas announced his retirement last month due to...

CHICAGO — On June 30th, in a room filled with 42 years of history, Pepe Vargas did something he rarely allowed himself to do: he let Chicago’s Latino cultural community honor him instead of the other way around. The founder and...

After more than four decades of building one of Chicago’s most beloved cultural institutions, ILCC Founder and Executive Director Pepe Vargas steps into a well-earned retirement. There are people who change a room when they walk in. And then there are...

Chicago’s Most Electrifying Free Concert Series Is Back — and This Summer, Riis Park Becomes the Center of the Latin Musical Universe There’s a park in Belmont Cragin where, every summer since 2024, something extraordinary happens. As the sun fades...

A Mother’s Day Tribute from the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago There is a particular kind of power that does not announce itself with fanfare or press releases. It does not wait for applause. It rises before the sun...

When the votes were counted at this year’s Chicago Latino Film Festival, the results sent a message louder than any press release could. Five of the nine Audience Choice Award winners and runners-up at the 42nd Chicago Latino Film Festival were directed or co-directed...

By James Klein | International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago There is an art form that refuses to be tamed. It lives in the stomp of a heel on a wooden stage, in the ache of a voice reaching for...

Good food shouldn’t just taste good—it should do good. That’s the philosophy behind Mercadito’s Tacos 4 Strength program, where each month a specially crafted taco raises funds for the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago. And this February, they’re bringing...

Eduardo Mejía didn’t set out to create an award-winning poster when he visited Chicago last summer. He was simply taking in the city—the iconic theater signs glowing against the skyline, the bold geometric architecture that defines the Windy City’s character....