Programs, groups, campaigns
Housing
Our housing program organizes the Chicago Tenants Council, of four tenant associations, at Grove Parc, the Burnham, Park Shore East, and Island Terrace.
The program works with tenants in multi-family subsidized housing to preserve and improve their homes, and to build the movement for the human right to housing.
The program organizes the coalition for a Community Benefits Agreement around the Obama Center: ObamaCBA.org. Also, the program organizes with the Chicago Housing Initiative, for city-wide housing measures like reform the the Chicago Housing Authority: ChicagoHousingInitiative.org
The organizer will develop and implement leadership development, base-building, and campaign plans.
After months of work, 90% of referendum voters in Tuesday’s election called on the City to put affordable housing at 63rd St and Blackstone Ave, and to pass an ordinance for South Shore like Woodlawn got in 2020.
Our member Ms. Tatum shared about the housing discrimination she faced when she worked at the University.
Join our town hall at 6pm on October’s fourth Tuesday. We’ll talk about the referendum on mental-health clinics now on November 8 ballots, and an affordable-housing referendum we want on February 2023 ballots.
STATEMENT FROM OUR CBA COALITION: “Luxury housing developers wanted the vacant land on 63rd Street. That there will be at least 157 affordable apartments on 63rd is thanks to everyday people coming together.”
Dear Lightfoot: South Shore needs a CBA ordinance, and Woodlawn needs you to come through on the housing land you guaranteed in your 2020 Woodlawn ordinance!
The ordinance says that, on 52 of the City-owned vacant lots - for 30% of new apartments developed on those lots - developers have to charge rents affordable to WORKING FAMILIES.
The 30 or so vacant City lots on 63rd St east of Cottage Grove Ave are a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make sure that working families don’t get pushed out of the neighborhood.
The annual summer kick-off by our Chicago Tenants Council. Back after two years’ COVID and better than ever!
“It's going to require us to really fight for that vision long-term... How we resist together over time [is by] centering people most impacted and treating each other with respect.”
Mental health
Our mental-health program organizes people directly impacted by this issue, as well as clinicians and activists. We want City-run mental-health clinics, public infrastructure to care for people, and a human right to health care.
Our member group is called the Mental Health Movement, and we co-lead the Collaborative for Community Wellness, made of nonprofit clinics and neighborhood groups. With the Collaborative, we campaign to: keep Chicago’s public clinics accessible; get more public clinics; and get the City to respond to mental-health crisis calls with clinicians instead of police (#TreatmentNotTrauma).
She was a STOP mental-health leader, STOP board member, artist, musician, and much more. She passed away last Friday.
Individuals with untreated mental illness are 16 times more likely to be killed In a police encounter
Our coalition is troubled by creation of a new crime: so-called battery against emergency services personnel. Under it, no actual physical contact is required to be charged with a misdemeanor and fined or jailed.
The referendum of voters in the 6th, 20th, 33rd Wards called for the City to re-open all of its closed mental-health centers — and to do so in support of police-free mental-health emergency response.
We’ll get to ask candidates what they’ll do in light of 6th Ward voting overwhelmingly that the City should re-open mental-health centers and run police-free mental-health emergency response.
Join our town hall at 6pm on October’s fourth Tuesday. We’ll talk about the referendum on mental-health clinics now on November 8 ballots, and an affordable-housing referendum we want on February 2023 ballots.
We just put a mental-health referendum on key areas’ ballots! We now have more opportunity than ever to re-open clinics through annual budgeting this fall. Let’s discuss at our town hall.
City Hall is holding a hearing on an ordinance to help fund a robust PUBLIC mental health care system. Join us on Wed. 2/23, especially if you live around Chatham, Englewood, Grand Crossing, or Auburn-Gresham!
For the first time since Mayor Emanuel closed most of Chicago's clinics a decade ago, we and our coalitions won an increase in spending on City mental-health clinics.
We and allies won a 72% increase in staffing. Our organizer said, “We will remain in this fight until there is a free public mental health center in every ward of Chicago!” Read our statement.
Youth
Our youth program organizes youth at Woodlawn's public high school, Hyde Park Academy, along with their peers.
The program meets weekly during the school year, as the school's Social-Justice Club. And it meets for five weeks during the summer for training.
Students have in recent years chosen to organize with the campaign for a Community Benefits Agreement around the Obama Center, which will be built across from Hyde Park Academy. And they have chosen to organize a campaign to replace school-based police with restorative justice.
In addition to organizing, the program does restorative justice, for instance, circles.
She’s been awarded by the Field and MacArthur foundations. Moreover, we’re sad but proud to share that she’s leaving STOP to become chief of staff to City Council’s education committee.
Our new restorative-justice coordinator says: “Thanks to STOP, I’m being the change I want to see in my school.” Help us start our new budget-year strong.
Register for our town hall 5/24 5-6:15pm with our youth organizers. Mayor Lightfoot wants to slash budgets at schools hit hardest by the pandemic - the South and West sides’.
Get updates from our youth organizers - on the fight for a police-free Hyde Park Academy, and on the upcoming Local School Council election!
The Coordinator will train and build the capacity of students, parents, teachers, staff, and community to engage in RJ practices. The coordinator will also support youth organizing.
Last week, we removed one police officer from Hyde Park Academy. Now your resources are essential to seeing this through.
Last year, our school—and nearly all majority-Black schools—voted unanimously to keep police in schools. They said it was impossible for a school like ours to remove police… Well, Black students made the impossible possible.
This June, Hyde Park Academy’s Local School Council will vote on whether they want to keep police in the school, or put in place an alternative safety plan.
Through conversation with leaders in our neighborhood and its Hyde Park Academy, let's support and learn from the fight for safety -- this time safety from COVID and Chicago/CPS officials!