Category: Uncategorized

Summer may be coming to an end but the fun is absolutely not letting up. From events to volunteer opportunities, we have lots planned. 

If you’re in a hurry, here are the topline items to know! 

• We are hosting a Partner & Funder Briefing, followed by a Give A Sh*t Happy Hour on September 14th from 3-5:30 pm. RSVP at bit.ly/2023cvbriefing.
• Pull up to C Space on Friday, September 29th at 7 p.m. for tacos, music, and crafting alongside other creatives. Sign up for C Space updates and reminders here. 
• Sh*t Talks return on September 21st with a new host 👀. Episodes drop weekly on Thursdays at 8 p.m. You can stream them on Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Sh*t Talkin’ Central. 

If you have a lil more time, keep reading for all the deets on our programming, volunteer opportunities, and ways to plug into movement work in the city!

Events!!

You are invited to the second annual Partner and Funder Briefing which will take place on September 14th from 3 – 5:30 pm at Chicago Votes’ office (1006 S. Michigan Ave. Unit 606). A Give A Sh*t Happy Hour (drinks, music, and art) will follow!

At the Partner and Funder Briefing, we will share updates on the work we have been doing as part of our current strategic plan, our vision for the upcoming year, the perspective of young leaders on the current state of youth civic and political work in Chicago, and have some fun!

Please RSVP and/or contribute to Chicago Votes at bit.ly/2023cvbriefing.

Unlock Civics

House Bill 39, Voting In Prison

In Illinois, the last remaining group of disenfranchised citizens is people serving convictions in prison, contributing to the decades-long neglect of the state’s prisons and the needs of those in custody and overpoliced communities. When people in prison cannot vote, influence policy, or hold elected officials accountable, inhumane prison conditions proliferate.

On August 25th, the Unlock Civics Coalition hosted a press conference on voter rights restoration in prison, kicking off the national voter restoration conference, “Civic Power: Challenging 50 Years of Mass Incarceration” at the Wit Chicago. Speakers included Illinois State Senator Mike Simmons and Senator Robert Peters, Illinois State Representative Lashawn Ford, Representative Theresa Mah, and Representative Marcus Evans, and directly impacted advocates, King Moosa, and Avalon Betts Gaston.

We won’t let the momentum for Voting in Prison subside. The Unlock Civics Coalition (made up of organizations, directly impacted people, and advocates) meets weekly. In this space, we discuss strategy and needed advocacy. If you are interested in joining our weekly Unlock Civics Coalition calls on Tuesdays from 4:15 to 5 p.m., email freddie@chicagovotes.com. 

Interested in Court-Watching?!

Chicago Votes and the Illinois Alliance for Reentry & Justice have launched a court-watching program, sending community members inside Cook County Criminal Court to watch judges and collect data on bias and misconduct. Judges wield a lot of power over people’s lives. They can decide who gets custody of a child, if a family gets evicted, or how long to sentence someone to prison. That is why observing them and their courtrooms is so important.

If you are interested in court-watching, please complete the online, self-paced Court-Watching training! You can also reach out to camille@chicagovotes.com if you have any questions about the program. 

Cook County Jail Votes

In August, we registered 100 voters inside Divisions 5 & 6 at Cook County Jail. 

We are ALWAYS seeking new Cook County Jail Votes volunteers. To become a volunteer, you must complete the fully online, self-paced Cook County Jail Votes training. To access the training, go to our volunteer portal. Once you complete the training course, you will start receiving monthly CCJ Votes opportunities in your inbox! 

Give A Sh*t

Sh*t Talks return on September 21st!

An all-new season of Sh*t Talks returns Thursday, September 21st with a new host 👀 Stay tuned for our host announcement coming in the next week!

Sh*t Talks are candid conversations with influential Chicagoans about issues young people care about. They uplift and center the voices of young Black and Brown Chicagoans, and provide viewers and listeners with opportunities to take civic action around issues. 

Episodes drop weekly on Thursdays at 8 p.m. You can stream them on Youtube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts, or Sh*t Talkin’ Central. 

Sh*t Talkin’ Central 

What do you know about your Alder? Claire Kaczanowski, a Humboldt Park resident, interviewed Alder Jessie Fuentes, sharing their experiences growing up in the community and their hopes for it.

Read the full interview with Alder Jessie Fuentes on Sh*t Talkin’ Central!

Alders are elected to represent one of fifty wards (or city districts). Together, all 50 alderpeople serve on the Chicago City Council, passing ordinances and serving our communities. Look up your alderperson here!

Get Paid to Create!

We publish stories submitted by young Chicagoans, a.k.a. you! You can submit op-eds, digital content, poems, and photos. Selected contributors will be paid $100 per published piece. Pitch us a story here. 

Come Through to C Space 

Each month, we open up our office to artists to share space and craft alongside and in community with one another. We call it C Space. Light refreshments are provided! September’s C Space is September 29th from 7-9 pm. Pull up for tacos and stay to craft and engage with other Chicago creatives. 
Sign up for C Space updates and reminders here!

Give A Sh*t Creative Collective

Our Give A Sh*t Creative Collective is a hub for creatives to rethink how we engage young Chicagoans in the political process. The Collective is made up of a diverse set of artists, including designers, musicians, poets, and videographers. Join the community and receive access to paid opportunities, including mini-grants, meetings, and events. September’s Give A Sh*t Creative Collective will take place during C Space, on September 29th from 7-9 pm in our office. 

Join the Creative Collective here.

This interview was conducted by Claire Kaczanowski, 24-year-old queer woman living in Humboldt Park. She teaches English to adults at the City Colleges of Chicago and is a drag performer who enjoys staying engaged with local politics.

“We don’t need multi-million dollar developments to beautify our community. We have artists, we have developers who build affordable housing, we can build things that do not include the displacement of our people,” said Alder Jessie Fuentes. I sat down with Alder Fuentes to talk local politics, art, and community development. Alder Fuentes is the first woman and the youngest person to lead Ward 26 (Humboldt Park) and is a strong advocate for uplifting young people through public school funding, developing the community through affordable housing and street beautification, and prioritizing mental health and public safety.

What was it like growing up in Humboldt Park?

Fuentes said, “Yeah, I was born and raised in Humboldt Park. My parents were separated. Both of them suffered from substance abuse. My dad spent a good chunk of my life in prison … And, you know, I think it took me a while as a young person to really know how to navigate my social and emotional temperament. I was really angry, about particularly my mom’s addiction, because that’s who I spent the most time with … as a young person, I think that you take on a lot of the responsibility for why your parent is the way they are.” Fuentes, who also uses they/them pronouns, further discussed the struggles they encountered as a young person, “Someone made a comment about my mother’s drug addiction because she would, you know, occasionally appear up at the school and it was very evident, right, that she was struggling. And I couldn’t take it … so I had gotten into a physical altercation that led to my expulsion from high school, and I ended up at a small alternative high school… And that school changed my life.” Fuentes is a huge advocate for cultivating a culturally and linguistically competent curriculum for public schools because of the experience she had at this alternative high school, “I remember sitting down with a mentor … The first comment that he made to me is, ‘We’re not here to treat you like a prisoner or an animal. You are a young person that’s worthy of an education.’ This is the first time I felt seen, dignified, humanized. And I didn’t feel judged for what I look like, how I dress, the zip code that I grew up in. … the Puerto Rican studies class really taught me about the colonial history of Puerto Rico and what it meant to be, you know, a colonial being of an island that had been a property of the United States for about a century. And then for the first time, my mom’s drug addiction, even my father’s, made sense to me, right, like what they were going through was a cycle of historical and generational trauma that they couldn’t break out of. And I feel conscious enough to want to do the work not just for myself, my family, but for our community. And I had become an activist thereafter.”

I love your ideas on street beautification and uplifting the community through art. What kinds of projects are you working on related to that goal?

Fuentes responds, “So we’re going to start convening monthly meetings to really outline our vision for North Avenue and that will look like several different things: murals on buildings, to pavers on the ground, to the type of light poles we want to see to really create a dramatic, artistic and creative corridor for North Avenue… North Avenue is really like a Latin American village. Right? And so it’s about how do we take art and creative architecture to really kind of make folks feel like they’re in Latin American village. And the reason that physical appearance is important is … it has an effect on your social emotional ability to find belonging in a space. And so when we do things like build affordable housing, it makes Puerto Ricans feel a little more at home.” Fuentes expounds upon why art is so important to them and the community, “I come from the culture of hip hop, poetry, and breakdancing and you know, all of those elements of art really saved my life … I acted in a couple of plays and those spaces were so liberating. And so it’s about like, how do we use our artistic community as a space of resistance, right? Like how do we use art to really articulate our experiences?” Fuentes concludes with, “We don’t need multibillion dollar developments to beautify our community. Right, we have, we have artists, we have developers who build affordable housing, we can build things that do not include the displacement of our people.”

I know you’re a big advocate of public school funding and supporting the development of a culturally and linguistically sound curriculum, what does that look like for you?

Fuentes said, “Yeah, you know, I attended public schools most of my life and I got expelled. And I didn’t realize the void that existed in my educational experience until I went to the Puerto Rican high school. And learned about black history, it’s so much more revolutionary than the version that you get in textbooks and Chicago public schools, or even when you learn about Latin American history, in this perspective, that is not really the Eurocentric version of what happened in those moments in history, I think if I had stayed in a CPS school my entire life, I probably would have never learned about the colonial experience of Puerto Ricans or the Spanish American War.” Fuentes explains the importance of multicultural education in CPS, “There’s an importance to have a bicultural and bilingual type of education in the city of Chicago. I mean Latino students make up the majority of Chicago Public Schools, and yet who they are, where they come from, is nowhere in the curriculum. I mean, think about how many students from Venezuela and Ecuador are going to be enrolling in the upcoming school year in the city of Chicago. Will they find who they are in those classrooms? Will they see a sense of belonging? Or will they get a version of history, right, that doesn’t speak to their humanity and their resistance. And so that’s that’s really important to me…. And if we are talking about healing the city of Chicago, healing young black and brown people, building a safe city, then that means providing proper education to our young people. Allowing them to politicize themselves and build consciousness so that they can become agents of change in the city of Chicago, not internalize… And for me, I think it’s extremely important to begin doing that in the classroom.”

The last issue I want to touch on is your advocacy for mental health resources. Can you expound upon your goals related to mental health?

Fuentes states that they believe that mental health should be a public service and states that, “There are no resources, mental health resources that we’re providing our young people that doesn’t require some comprehensive health insurance, or an insanely expensive copay that all families can afford … and the investment in the mental health of the residents of the city Chicago should be a priority for all of us. But more importantly, we just don’t have systems that allow us to de-escalate or create spaces of healing for individuals who are on the brink of a mental health crisis, or a breakdown. In fact, we have systems that exacerbate those situations and often go from an individual experiencing a mental health crisis to a crime real quick. And, you know, it’s unfair to the individual that is struggling with their mental health. It is unfair to the entire community, to not have systems in which we are able to truly care for our residents.” Fuentes also emphasizes that “We need to have a response system that doesn’t include the police. Specifically when it’s not needed, right. We need a police free system that allows experts who know how to de-escalate or know how to respond properly to individuals that are in the middle of a mental health crisis.”

Final question. It sounds like you deal with a lot of heavy topics every day, so what do you do to unwind after a long day of advocacy?

Fuentes said, “I’m someone who listens to a lot of music. My partner is really great… We have dinner together and reflect and decompress. And I like to work out.”

Thank you for all that you do for Ward 26, and for the city of Chicago, Alder Fuentes.

Post photo credit to The New Day \ Daniel Delgado

Since last month’s newsletter, lots has happened! The Illinois Supreme Court ruled the Pretrial Fairness Act is constitutional, three finalists for CPD superintendent were named, Chicago held community budget roundtables, #TreatmentNotTrauma passed out of the City Council committee…. And aliens were discovered??? 

Anyhoo, keep reading this month’s newsletter for volunteer opportunities, upcoming events, and programmatic announcements! Happy August!

The Clique

Chicago Votes is a grassroots community organizing organization. We were founded to be a platform for the youth voice and to empower the next generation of Chicagoans to create the change they want to see in their city. We can accomplish nothing alone, and we always strive to work in collaboration, be in the community and be an active part of the movement. 

Join our membership program, The Clique, and get access to exclusive Fuel The Movement social events! We appreciate whatever time and resources our community shares with us, and we created this program to intentionally thank everyone for their support!

Unlock Civics

Judges wield a lot of power over people’s lives. They can decide who gets custody of a child, if a family gets evicted, or how long to sentence someone to prison.

Chicago Votes and the Illinois Alliance for Reentry & Justice have launched a court watching program, sending community members inside Cook County Criminal Court to watch judges and collect data on bias and misconduct. The data collected will help in the creation of a judicial voter guide in 2024.

Court Watching will take place from August through the beginning of October. Shifts take place on weekdays during the day. Volunteers are asked to complete five shifts in total. If this program fits with your interests and capacity, please complete the online, self-paced Court Watching training!

Reimagining Democracy

This past weekend Chicago Votes popped out to the West Garfield Park CRIME DROUGHT Installation: Re-imagining Health and Wellness in our Communities. CRIME DROUGHT is a unified collective within the Black and Brown community in Chicago to show the true meaning behind CRIME DROUGHT: to bring an end to the crime and violence in communities of color, in our hometown Chicago and throughout America.

The event featured an entirely free grocery store, health screenings from Rush, community resources, peace circles, music, art… and the list keeps going. Chicago Votes engaged folks in conversations about city government & voting, registered folks to vote, and gave out lots of prizes!

Give A Sh*t

 Don’t miss the Intersection! 

Don’t miss your chance to connect with some amazing musicians, artists, and advocates at The Intersection event in Chicago on August 5th! We’ll have cultural enrichment through music, fashion, and food for $10 a person! Get your tickets here. 

 C Space 

Each month, we open up our office to artists to share space and craft alongside and in community with one another. We call it C Space. Light refreshments are provided! The next C Spaces are Friday, August 18th, and Friday, September 15th from 7-9 pm. RSVP for office location!

Sign up for C Space updates here!

Give A Sh*t Creative Collective 

Our Give A Sh*t Creative Collective is a hub for creatives to rethink how we engage young Chicagoans in the political process. The Collective is made up of a diverse set of artists, including designers, musicians, poets, and videographers. Joining gives you access to paid opportunities, including mini grats. August’s Give A Sh*t Creative Collective will take place during C Space, on August 18th from 7-9 pm in our office. 

Join the Creative Collective here.

Sh*t Talkin’ Central 

The latest piece, written by Stephen Yoshida, examines “affordable housing” and the impacts of it being a statutorily-defined category designed out of political expediency and not actually an accurate description. Read “That Development is Affordable Like Pizza is a Vegetable” on Sh*t Talkin’ Central. 

We publish stories submitted by young Chicagoans, a.k.a. you! You can submit op-eds, digital content, poems, and photos. Selected contributors will be paid $100 per published piece. Pitch us a story here. 

By Stephen Yoshida

A lifelong Chicagoan, Stephen is a proud graduate of Lane Tech with an architecture degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He covers the City of Chicago development and housing policy through the City Bureau Documenters program. 

Vegetable (Noun)One of the required components of reimbursable meals; 2. A quarter cup of tomatoes served as two tablespoons of tomato paste. As defined by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA)

For those unfamiliar with the “pizza is vegetable” meme, here’s some context: in 2011, the Congressional spending bill allowed the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to define the tomato puree in pizza as a vegetable and count it towards nutrition requirements in tax-funded school lunches. President Obama signed the bill on December 23^rd, 2011. Merry Christmas, public school children.

This is the most famous case of the government’s game of tricky, statutory definitions. The public says, “We want nutritious meals for the kids,” the Feds play with the definition of “nutrition,” and what we get is a “statutorily nutritious” styrofoam tray of pizza, a fruit cup, and chocolate milk. This game is also played with affordable housing.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), for rent and utilities to be considered “affordable,” they should cost no more than 30% of the household gross income for households earning less than 80% of Area Median Income (AMI).

The trick here starts with how HUD defines the “area” in Area Median Income. In Chicago, our “area” is the “Chicago-Joliet-Naperville Fair Market Rent Area.” This means the median incomes in the most affluent Chicago suburbs are included, inflating the overall median income of the “Chicago area”. For example, the median income for the ZIP codes HUD counts as the “Chicago area” is $81,000 per year. In Naperville, it’s $130,000. In Chicago, it’s $66,000. In the Englewood ZIP code 60621 it’s $24,000. Applying HUD’s inflated regional average income places “affordable” housing out of reach of working people.

Let’s consider a hypothetical statutorily affordable housing development in Englewood for people making 60% of AMI. The law limits the rent for a one-bed apartment to $1,173 per month. An Englewood household interested in renting that unit needs to make $46,920 to afford to spend 30% of their income on rent, per HUD statutes. Even when dual-income households are included, $1,173 in rent is out of reach of three-quarters of the neighborhood. What’s more, the project’s developer gets big tax-funded grants!

For families, the outlook is even worse. Let’s say an Englewood family has two adults and two teenage kids and the parents want to give them their own rooms – a standard amenity among the middle class. That family needs to earn $65,040 per year to afford a three-bedroom apartment. But HUD limits how much applicants can make to qualify for “affordable” housing. The maximum income for a 4-person household that’s eligible for that apartment is $62,520. You’d need to earn too little to afford the rent to qualify. And this is even worse for three- and four-bed units.

The City of Chicago knows this system doesn’t work for poor families. In the January meeting of the Chicago Plan Commission, then Chicago Dept. Housing Commissioner Marisa Novara spoke on a “mismatch” between the cost of family-sized apartments and what poor families can afford. Plan Commissioner Guacolda Reyes, also Chief Real Estate Development Officer of Pilsen’s Resurrection Project, says she’s never even seen four-bed affordable units because there aren’t any qualified applicants. The City’s development agenda is raising property values and tax revenue by replacing poor Chicagoans with rich out-of-towners. “Affordable” housing is a performative charade. 

The truth is, that statutorily-defined affordable housing houses our communities as effectively as rectangle pizza nourishes kids. Like pizza sauce being a vegetable, “affordability” is nothing more than bogus, legalistic wordplay. It’s a taxpayer-subsidized distraction from the ongoing displacement of Chicago’s working families by a colonial gentrification industrial complex. Now is the time to quit the greasy “affordable housing” game. In Pilsen, they say “El barrio no se vende” or “Our neighborhood is nor for sale.”  Through organizing for power, we, the people of Chicago, can put an end to the destructive practices of the real estate speculators by removing the land our communities sit on from the market. This strategy is called “decommodification.” It is when neighbors own and manage their land together from building to building through cooperatives and from block to black through land trusts. Only when we find ways to take our ball and go home can we stop playing.

Summertime Chi is officially here and the people are outside! We hope you are finding time to get outside and enjoy yourself, reading in the park, meeting up with the girls at the Point, or volunteering with your fav organizers at Chicago Votes 🙂 

In this month’s Chicago Votes Monthly, we introduce you to our newest staff member, announce our new volunteer portal, update you on our programming, and tell you how you can tune into the work this month. 

Introducing Camille Williams, Senior Programs Manager and Diversity Equity Inclusion and Accessibility Lead!

Volunteering with us is easier than ever! 

You can sign up to volunteer and get trained on your own time, at your own pace. All of our volunteer opportunities can be found on our new volunteer portal. You can sign up for Cook County Jail Votes, summer tabling opportunities, the GAS Creative Collective, C Space, and more here. 

The steps to becoming a volunteer are simple.  

1. Learn about the programs: Chicago Votes has three initiatives: Give A Sh*t, Reimagining Democracy, and Unlock Civics. Each initiative houses several programs with volunteer opportunities. Read about each program to find a program that aligns with your interests and capacity.
2. Get trained: Complete the required training (at your own pace, on your own time!!) for the programs you are interested in. Once completed, you will be prompted to join the program’s email list.
3.  Check your email: Volunteers will receive opportunities regularly through email and text. Some programs occur on a regular schedule (ex. CCJ Votes), but others take place on an ad hoc basis.

Unlock Civics

House Bill 39, Voting in Prison

During the Illinois legislative session, a subject matter hearing for Voting in Prison (HB 39) was held in the House Ethics & Elections Committee. Committee members heard testimony from Representative Lashawn Ford, Illinois Alliance for Justice and Reentry’s Avalon Betts-Gaston, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee’s Cliff Helm, voting rights experts Dr. Christina Rivers, and Chicago Votes Co-Executive Director Stevie Valles. We also rallied in the capitol rotunda, making lots of noise! HB 39 remains in the House Ethics & Elections Committee, with a shot at passing during the fall veto session. 

To learn about the laws passed throughout the spring session, we recommend you read Amanda Vinickey’s “Legislative Session Roundup: Updates on Chicago’s Elected School Board, Red Light Cameras.”

That being said, our grassroots coalition advocacy continues! We won’t let the momentum for Voting in Prison subside. The Unlock Civics Coalition (made up of organizations, directly impacted people, and advocates) meets weekly. In this space we discuss strategy and needed advocacy. If you are interested in joining our weekly Unlock Civics Coalition calls on Tuesdays from 4:15 to 5 pm, email freddie@chicagovotes.com.

Reimagining Democracy

Give A Sh*t

Introducing C Space! 

Each month, we open up our office to artists to share space and craft alongside and in community with one another. We call it C Space. Light refreshments are provided! The next C Spaces are Friday, July 21st, Friday, August 18th, and Friday, September 15th from 7-9 pm. RSVP for office location!

Sign up for C Space updates here!

Sh*t Talkin’ Central 

Sh*t Talkin’ Central got a makeover; check it out (: It’s a hub for think pieces, stories, and Sh*t Talks. 

We publish stories submitted by young Chicagoans, a.k.a. you! You can submit op-eds, digital content, poems, and photos. Selected contributors will be paid $100 per published piece. Pitch us a story here. 

Ideas for stories to pitch:

• The need for safe spaces for youth to congregate evenings/weekends
• A photo series of your neighborhood
• A interview with a local creative
• An interview with your alderperson
• A pitch to voters to stay involved in the summer’s city budget process

The Clique

Sustainable givers are automatically given membership to the Clique–our membership program. Members of the Clique have access to exclusive concerts, member-only virtual and in-person events and trainings, and more than a few surprises! Oh yeah, you also get access to discounted merchandise from the G.A.S. Station.

Reading Recommendations

• “As Illinois Sees 700% Spike In Abortion Patients Coming Here For Care, Chicago’s Steep Hotel Costs Present Another Obstacle” by Kayleigh Padar in Block Club Chicago
• “Is Chicago’s City Council Changing? What We’re Watching” by Anna Aguiar Kosicki in City Bureau 
• “How long does violence prevention take to be effective?” by Chima Ikoro in The TRiiBE

With one election after another throughout the past year, we are relieved to say the next election won’t be until 2024, phew! Until then, we have the opportunity to reflect on our past efforts to get young people to the polls!

Between the February municipal elections and the April runoff, voter turnout from young people ages 18-24 increased by 32%, with ages 25-34 increasing by 24%. That is no small accomplishment. In six weeks’ time, grassroots organizations, campaigns, and nonprofits hit the ground running– door-knocking, phone banking, hosting voter mobilization events, and more. 

After conducting a robust get-out-the-vote (GOTV) campaign ahead of the February municipal elections, Chicago Votes continued to turn out voters with an energetic GOTV campaign ahead of the April runoff. We released our March-madness-themed voter guide, which included a poster from Chicago artist Ewrks, a mayoral candidate questionnaire, and other helpful voting information. On top of that, our fellows organized dozens of voter mobilization events, including open gym & mic nights at the community colleges, phone banking, mayoral forums, phone banking, and canvassing. It’s been a lot, but with such a significant increase in young voter turnout, it’s safe to say that it is paying off!

In this month’s Chicago Votes Monthly, we recap the April runoff election, update you on our programming, and tell you all the ways you can tune into the work this spring.  

Celebrating Our Spring Fellows!

Shortly after the runoff elections, we wrapped up our ’22-’23 Get Out the Vote, Give A Sh*t, and Digital Organizing fellows. Throughout these programs, they have organized 3 robust get out the vote campaigns, contributed to 3 voter guides, hosted an entire GAS Weekend, mastered wheat-pasting, phone banked, hosted events at community colleges & high schools, made countless TikToks, written op-eds, and even more.

Denzel, Jazmine, and Emoonah thank you for your months-long on-the-ground work to get young people to the polls. Mena and Temi, thank you for your innovation and commitment to voter education in the digital realm. Tre, thank you for your creativity, vision, and energy. The number of creatives you have brought into civic spaces has been priceless.

Unlock Civics

House Bill 39, Voting in Prison

Chicago Votes is working with the Unlock Civics Coalition to pass legislation to restore the right to vote to people serving time in prison. House Bill 39 (HB39), is under consideration for the Elections Omnibus bill in the Ethics and Elections Committee led by Chairman Maurice West. HB39 will be scheduled for a subject matter hearing before the session ends in May.

If you are interested in joining our weekly Unlock Civics Coalition calls on Tuesday from 4:15 to 5pm, email freddie@chicagovotes.com. 

Reimagining Democracy

Are you an Illinois educator? Sign up to introduce the Illinois legislative process to your students in an engaging, relevant, and influential way. The only way to learn the legislative process is to directly engage with it! Chicago Votes’ Legislative Tracking curriculum.

So, what does the legislative tracking curriculum entail? 

• Learning how a bill moves through the House and Senate

• Selecting a bill to track and either support or oppose

• Creating a campaign plan for the bill

• Reaching out to lawmakers

The curriculum takes place now through the end of the legislative session, May 19th. Sign up to bring bill tracking into your classroom

Give A Sh*t

 Sh*t Talks 

Thursday night Instagram Live Sh*t Talks are back! Beginning May 4th, each Thursday at 8pm, we’ll be on IG Live with community members, artists, electeds, and many more, discussing issues that are most pressing to young people in Chicago today. 

If you would like to be featured or have a topic you would like to see discussed, feel free to fill out this form. We would love to connect and make it happen! 

Catch up on previous episodes on Youtube or wherever you stream your podcasts!

Sh*t Talkin’ Central 

Sh*t Talkin Central amplifies the voices of young bloggers who create online content from videos and trainings, to op-eds and blog posts, allowing us to view the world through their lens or pen. The goal is to create a culturally relevant and engaging space for civil discourse. 

If you are a writer, poet, or storyteller of sorts, you could be paid $100 for your submissions. Go to bit.ly/pitchchicagovotes to submit your story/article/blog post for consideration to Sh*t Talkin’ Central. Selected writers will be paid $100.

Volunteer Opportunities

By Caleb Dunson

In the 1960s a young man from the west side of Chicago transformed Black, Puerto Rican, and  white gangs into political organizations that sought to build the kinds of community institutions the city refused to provide. They established free day care centers, free food pantries, free breakfast programs, free clothing programs, and free community health clinics across the west and south sides. They challenged the hegemonic order imposed by Chicago’s machine politics, openly opposing the corrupt Police Department and building support among the city’s working class. Fred Hampton and the Original Rainbow Coalition exposed the weakness of the old Daley regime, and forced the establishment to respond through violence to stop them. 

Mayor Richard J. Daley and his allies at newspapers like the conservative-leaning Chicago Tribune characterized the Rainbow Coalition as violent and criminal, a movement which required a forceful response to be defeated. Of the Coalition, Mayor Daley said, “These criminal gangs extort money from businessmen and also from school children. They burglarize, assault, rob, rape, and murder…They seek to cloak this criminal activity under the guise of social involvement and what they advertise as constructive endeavors.” This character assassination eventually turned into an actual assassination, that of Fred Hampton, done by the FBI and the Chicago Police Department, which effectively ended the Original Rainbow Coalition. 

It would be another 15 years before another Rainbow Coalition was formed, and that one propelled Harold Washington into office. And from Mayor Washington onward, the city has been largely controlled by the Democratic machine. The result of this has been the development of a city so profoundly unequal, segregated, and over-policed that the creation of a new Rainbow Coalition has seemed almost impossible at times. 

And yet, nearly 60 years after the rise of the Original Rainbow Coalition, and 40 years after the political movement that carried Harold Washington to office, we once again have the opportunity to build a new Rainbow Coalition. The city has been eager for this chance, the chance to send to the fifth floor a mayor that will demand better for the parts of the city that aren’t awash in cash and opportunity. That is what’s at stake in this election. The promise of investing meaningfully in communities long ignored by city government, in giving neighborhoods on the south and west sides the opportunity to create institutions that center equity and humanity rather than ruthless capitalistic growth. With this election, we can set this city back on the path started by Fred Hampton and lead the city in a truly democratic, community-centered fashion. We can do this by electing Brandon Johnson for mayor of Chicago.

Now it must be acknowledged that electoral politics only offer a limited opportunity to create the transformative, liberating change many of us seek. But this election is certainly a step in the right direction. At the very least, it is a chance to reject an unimaginative, dangerous vision of Chicago, one guided by a desire for punishment and domination. By rejecting Paul Vallas at the ballot box, we reaffirm our desire for a new set of politics, hopeful and not cynical. 

So I am asking that everyone who can vote today, vote, because it is no exaggeration to say that whoever becomes mayor will determine how the city will look for decades to come. And while we still have the chance, we should return that power to the people.

Paid for by Chicago Votes Action Fund.

By Temi Akande, Digital Organizing Fellow

With one of the most consequential elections just days away, the future of Chicago is in the hands of Chicago’s youngest, and most unlikely voters. 

I was reminded of my generation’s power this past week at Chicago Votes’ Party at the Polls. With over 400 high school seniors at a block-club style voter mobilization rally at the Maggie Daley early voting site, it was evident that we have the numbers and we have the passion. 

We’ve seen it many times throughout the history of this city–when youth are mobilized and standing together on issues, we show out. We saw it during the 2020 uprisings after the murder of George Floyd. We saw it in 2021 when 13 year old Adam Toledo was killed by the police. Anger is an emotion that drives people out. But hope for a better future can also be a catalyst for change.

During the Party at the Polls’ student power rally, a student speaker from Simeon high school correctly informed his peers that the 18-24 year old vote only comprised 3% of total votes cast, with just 16% of voters in that age group voting. There are a list of factors contributing to this–insufficient civics education in schools, lack of access to trustworthy voting information, and a disillusionment with our systems of government to name a few. 

But at the same time, young Black and brown people are disproportionately affected by the decisions made by our mayor. When our schools and neighborhoods aren’t invested in and mental health facilities are closed down, we are the ones suffering. This is why it is so important to not leave the fate of our city up to chance. 

As a young Chicagoan myself, I admit that I don’t associate Chicago politics with feelings of positivity. We have witnessed firsthand how the rich, wealthy, and well connected are oftentimes put into positions of power and not held accountable for their actions. I didn’t grow up in Chicago, but in my past 8 years here I’ve lived in a few different neighborhoods and seen the discrepancies. I lived in Little Village for two years and firsthand witnessed gun violence and how it’s impacting the young people in that neighborhood. There is so much beauty in that neighborhood that is often overlooked because it is associated with violence. That is a common theme of Black and brown neighborhoods on the south and west sides of Chicago. 

We can’t change our city overnight, but we can take steps in a better direction if we simply take charge. If we change our mindset from “things are just happening to us” to “we are happening to this city” we’ll see that there’s more power within us than we think.  Voting is on of the main tools we have to ensure our voices are heard. 

The results of this mayoral run-off election will be largely determined by the 18-35 age bracket because when we show up at the polls we affect the numbers drastically.  We are so much more powerful than we could even imagine, especially because we are expected to be civically unengaged.

Davion from Simeon Academy professed, “this generation will continue to be a revolutionary symbol in this country. We have significant power. We must utilize it so generations after us continue to progress society forward”

In the next four years I and many of my friends could have children of our own. What type of quality of life do we want the next generations to have? I am proud to be able to tell my children that I mobilized around getting young people civically engaged for multiple election cycles. Voting is essential, and I want to encourage all of my friends, colleagues, and anybody who cares even a LITTLE about the future of this city to vote. 

If you are ineligible to vote, continue to spread information so that we can combat the misinformation that is so easily and commonly spread. Keep encouraging those around you to not only vote but to hold elected officials accountable when they are elected into office. 

By Mena Enuenwosu, Digital Organizing Fellow

A lot of people believe that the most important elections are the ones that elect the seat to the highest office in the nation; the presidential election held every four years. However, there are a set of elections that actually affect your day-to-day life a lot more–we call those municipal elections.

So what are municipal elections? Municipal elections are held to elect local governing officials. In Chicago’s case, this would be the Mayor, the City Clerk, the City Treasurer, Alderpeople from all 50 wards, and Police District Councils.

Here are four reasons why you should vote in the upcoming Chicago municipal elections.

1. Local government offices and their decisions can, and will, affect your day-to-day life

Upset that 40% of Chicago’s budget goes to the police? Well, the mayor is responsible for creating the city budget. 

Upset about how traffic caused by construction in your neighborhood has added an hour to your daily commute to work? You’ll need to talk to your alderperson.

Want to introduce a financial education program in Chicago Public schools? You should talk to the city treasurer!

Need a sticker for your car? You’ll be heading to the office of the city clerk.

Upset about the heightened police presence in your neighborhood? Police District Councils have a say in how police engage with the community. 

Let’s break down the offices on the ballot. First up, let’s talk about the executive or the manager of the city–the mayor. The person elected Mayor of Chicago following Chicago’s 2023 municipal election, is in charge of the city’s daily operations. They have the power to appoint and dismiss key department heads–such as the Chief of the Chicago Police Department. The mayor is also responsible for presenting a yearly budget to the City Council. They have a huge say on what the city will spend its money on for the fiscal year. They should address the needs of the community: gentrification and housing, transportation, and parks and recreational areas, etc. 

On top of that, Chicago is divided into 50 legislative districts or “wards”. Each district is represented by an alderperson, who is elected by citizens to serve a four-year term. Together, 50 aldermen from Chicago’s 50 districts make up the Chicago City Council, which serves as the legislative branch of the government of Chicago. Alderpeople vote on city ordinances, zoning changes, traffic control issues, mayoral appointees, and the budget.

Next up we have the treasurer. The treasurer is the city’s banker; they keep track of the city’s finances, managing all cash and investments for the City of Chicago, the four City employee pension funds, and the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund. The treasurer’s office also manages a number of programs that promote financial education and small business growth in Chicago’s neighborhoods.

The City Clerk is in charge of record-keeping for the city of Chicago and its elections. The position is central to government transparency because the clerk is responsible for keeping and making official records and legislation accessible to city residents. They also run the CityKey program-providing free government-issued  ID card to Chicagoans regardless of age, gender, immigration status, or housing status.

Lastly, Police District Councils are a newer one! The newly created Police District Councils establish community oversight of the police. There are 22 police districts. Every four years during municipal elections, three community members will be elected to each of the 22 Police District Councils. Council members must live in their respective police district and cannot have been a member of the Chicago Police Department, Independent Police Review Authority, Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA), or the Police Board for at least three years before they assume office. 

Council members are supposed to keep an eye on the police, hold monthly public meetings, work on the implementation of restorative justice practices, and build stronger relationships between police and community members. 

With that in mind, it is clear all five of these offices have a very real impact on each of our day-to-day lives. 

2. When we don’t vote, decisions are made without our input.

Young people typically vote at lower rates than older people. There are a lot of reasons for this including lack of access to voting resources and civics education, and disillusionment with the current system. However, if we don’t vote, we are allowing other people to make very important decisions about our lives. 

Our experience as young people is unique; we are coming of age during a pandemic, an increased awareness of racial injustice, and extreme climate change. We are also the youngest voting bloc, meaning we will be dealing with the repercussions of decisions for the most time. 

When young people do not vote, other people get to decide the future we will live in. 

3. We are literally paying for the city.

Anyone who lives in Chicago pays taxes to the city. Buying a bottle of soda at 7/11? Paying the city. Got a parking ticket? Paying the city. 

All of the taxes we pay go towards the city budget. The city budget is created by the mayor and voted on by city council or alderpeople. So, the people who are elected to office decide how to spend the money that comes from us–people in the city.

In 2012, Mayor Rahm Emmanual closed six of the city’s twelve mental health clinics, four of which were located on the South Side. Still, ten years later, the city only has six public mental health facilities. This is due to “lack of funding.” However, 40% of the entire city budget goes to the police department. If we vote people into office who share our values, we can create a city that doesn’t prioritize police, incarceration, and punitive responses over investing in healing and restorative spaces. 

4. You have the right to vote in Illinois

In Illinois, all citizens over age 18 who aren’t serving a conviction can vote. Still, that means community members without citizenship and those in prison are locked out of our democracy. When people aren’t viewed as constituents or voters, elected officials aren’t pressured to hear and address their needs. That is why it is important we fight for a democracy that includes all of us. 

In the meantime, though, it is our responsibility to vote for people who will create a future where all people are valued and included. 

By Caleb Dunson

This is a peculiar moment in time. We have only partially emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, and we have yet to fully understand how it’s affected our country socially, politically, and economically. Donald Trump was defeated in 2020, and yet the threat of authoritarian control looms with his return and Florida Governor Ron Desantis eyeing the presidency. We have stood against dictatorship by sending military aid to Ukraine, but the coming months of the war, the results of which will alter the global democratic movement, seem the most decisive yet. In essence, we have lived through a series of history-defining events, and now we stand on the other side with the task of determining a way forward. 

This moment is crucial. We must address the questions created and elevated in the past few years. How will we solve issues of inequality worsened by the pandemic? How will we fight back against politicians who seek to obscure history and oppress the disadvantaged? How will we build an economy that serves everyone? Because the answers to these questions are so consequential, we must take seriously the task of selecting people to answer them.

It might seem that the sole power to make key political decisions rests in the hands of our national representatives, but the people we choose to speak for us at the local level are just as, if not more, influential. They have the power to answer those crucial, nation-shaping questions, and to do so in a way that has a direct bearing on our day to day lives. They determine who can afford to live in the city, how our education system serves our youth, and how economic opportunity is distributed between our neighborhoods. They influence what our justice system looks like, how we offer mental health support, and who receives access to public health resources. 

Because of this, the stakes are high in this election. The past four years have been marked by controversy, chaos and turmoil. We are trying to figure out how we will address the longstanding problem of police violence, how we will reduce crime without punitive measures, and how we will invest in the development of our underfunded neighborhoods. And we are doing this while trying to emerge from the pandemic as a world-class city. The leaders we elect today will preside over the effort to address these problems. They will set the priorities for our city and set us on a path toward a future Chicago.

This is not to say that voting will automatically solve all of our problems. It’s not a silver bullet. But nevertheless, it’s a crucial action among many that we all must take if we want to change our city. It’s an opportunity to voice our desire for a better Chicago, and we cannot waste it.

I am currently writing this from the United Kingdom. I ordered a mail-in ballot over a month ago and it never made it to this side of the Atlantic, so I have been disenfranchised in this election. This has reminded me of just how precious the vote is. Though I cannot vote this time around, I hope that you will. I hope that you will take the opportunity to have your say in the direction of this city, and to prove that when the community calls for change, it does come.