William Guerrero has been playing chess since he was 8 years old. His passion for the game grew even more when he founded the Chicago Chess Club in October 2024.
“It wasn’t really supposed to be a club. It was supposed to be a way for me to make friends,” Guerrero said. “I just had one chess board.”
Now, Guerrero has 20 custom-made chess boards and people waiting their turn to play a game of chess. His chess events take place in various locations, from the Pueblo Market in Pilsen to Blazed Bakery in Logan Square.
One of his most recent events, called “Puff Puff Pawn,” was cannabis themed. It took place at Blazed Bakery, a cafe with cannabis products, located in Logan Square.
He chose to found the Chicago Chess Club after looking for it on Instagram. With the user name available, Guerrero decided, “Let’s do it.”
The 24-year-old said the club grew “rapidly” and he wanted to find ways to make it more interesting. He has hosted events at different small businesses, including cannabis shops, bakeries and coffee shops.
Guerrero, who grew up in Pilsen, said he understands the importance of “showcasing small businesses.” Some have reached out to him to offer their spaces for chess club events.
As a one-man show, Guerrero tries to host about four events a week to give the chess community ample opportunities to participate.
Yazud Brito-Milian, a Chicago-based poet, has been going to Chicago Chess Club events since April.
One of Brito-Milian’s favorite chess club events was hosted at The Silver Room in Hyde Park, where a DJ played music. They said Guerrero has done well in intertwining chess with nightlife.
“I think the stereotype that’s around chess, which is that it’s pretty, cookie cutter,” Brito-Milian said.
Brito-Milian has an appreciation for the players “who were willing to teach” and enjoyed meeting new people, especially since they started attending chess events with little experience.
With rising U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) concerns, and as someone with Mexican roots himself, Guerrero has considered shifting all events online.
“ICE agents are arresting now because of skin color or because of language or because of how I look, it’s like, doesn’t matter if you’re a citizen,” Guerrero said.
He emphasized the importance of any chess player — anyone of any background, from any neighborhood — feeling at ease.
So far, he has kept the events in person, but he assures people, “Whenever you come to a chess event, it’s a safe space,” Guerrero said.
Brito-Milian, who is a friend of Guerrero’s, respects this approach.
“Ultimately, he decided that people need spaces to gather right now more than ever, and especially spaces that are kind of outright in support of immigrants and migrants and folks of different status,” Brito-Milian said.
Guerrero is vocal on his personal accounts about his support of immigrants and families.
Holding the events in private spaces, they explained, feels like a level of protection, since federal agents would need a warrant to enter.
“I think that this community is needed more than ever,” said Webster An, another chess club attendee who moved to Chicago in June. “These club events and getting people that have a shared interest, but also outside of the shared interest may have other shared values, is a good thing to get people together.”
An, who has been playing chess since he was 6 years old, found out about the chess club from a Block Club Chicago article he read.
“Whether it’s another country or Chicago or New York or LA, I can find a chess club and meet new people and make new friends through that chess background,” An said.
After only going to Chicago Chess Club twice, An already feels welcomed.
Guerrero immediately got up in the middle of his game to say hello to An when he walked into Tuesday’s “Puff Puff Pawn” event.
Guerrero said his favorite part about the chess club was meeting new people.
“I can proudly say that I’ve made some new friends,” Guerrero said. For him, that means the club is a success.
