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New Pritzker transition committee: “Equality, Equity and Opportunity”

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Illinois

* Press release…

Today, Governor-elect JB Pritzker and Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton announced the formation and members of the transition’s Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity.

The committee is the fourth of several working groups of the transition made up of subject-matter experts who will advise and guide the incoming Pritzker-Stratton administration. The Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity will be chaired by Access Living President and CEO Marca Bristo, Casa Central interim President and CEO Marty Castro, and Pride Action Tank Executive Director Kim Hunt and consist of 25 members.

“JB and I are committed to building an inclusive administration that’s representative of the state we serve, and our transition team will start by listening to the communities across Illinois who haven’t been heard or who’ve experienced systemic disinvestment,” said Lieutenant Governor-elect Juliana Stratton. “The Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity will tackle civil rights issues in our state and work to ensure Illinois can protect children and families from dangerous policies from the federal government. Illinois is a welcoming state for all, and JB and I are committed to making sure every resident has access to opportunity and the tools they need to thrive.”

COMMITTEE ON EQUALITY, EQUITY, AND OPPORTUNITY MEMBERS

Marca Bristo co-chairs the transition’s Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity and is president and CEO of Access Living, one of the first 10 federally-funded centers for independent living in the United States. As the former president of the National Council on Independent Living, she worked with the broader civil rights community on the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Bristo served as the Presidentially-appointed chairperson of the National Council on Disability from 1994-2002. She is the most recent emeritus President of the United States International Council on Disabilities and is a member of Human Rights Watch Disability Advisory Committee and Obama Foundation Inclusion Council. Bristo serves on the Boards of Rush University Medical Center, Forefront, and the RIC Foundation.

Marty Castro co-chairs the transition’s Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity and is the interim CEO of Casa Central, one of the largest Latino social service agencies in the Midwest, and CEO of Castro Synergies, a social impact consulting firm. Castro was appointed chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights by President Barack Obama and was the first Latino in U.S. history to hold that post. He also served as Chairperson of the Illinois Human Rights Commission during the Quinn Administration. Castro is active locally and globally on issues of social justice and is on the Board of Directors of the National Museum of Mexican Art, the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance and the Global Diplomacy Lab, and he is a member of the BMW Foundation’s Responsible Leaders Network.

Kim Hunt co-chairs the transition’s Committee on Equality, Equity, and Opportunity and is the executive director of the Pride Action Tank, a project of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, where she also serves as the senior director of Policy and Advocacy Operations. Hunt’s career spans the public, private, and nonprofit sectors with a focus on advocacy, community and organizational development, and leadership. She is the former executive director of Affinity Community Services, a social justice organization that works with and on behalf of Black LGBTQ people and queer youth. Prior to Affinity, she co-founded and served as managing partner of O-H Community Partners, a management and strategy consulting firm. Hunt has been inducted into the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame.

Jaquie Algee, Board Member, Women’s March Chicago

Tom Balanoff, President, SEIU Local 1

Lawrence Benito, CEO, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights

John Bouman, President, National Sargeant Shriver Center on Poverty Law

Terry Cosgrove, President and CEO, Personal PAC

Ami Ghandi, Director of Voting Rights and Civic Empowerment, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for
Civil Rights

Teresa Haley, President, Illinois State Conference NAACP

Chris Harris, Senior Pastor, Bright Star Church

Brian Johnson, CEO, Equality Illinois

Andy Kang, Executive Director, Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Theresa Mah, State Representative, Illinois General Assembly

T. Ray McJunkins, Senior Pastor, Union Baptist Church

William McNary, Co-Executive Director, Citizen Action

Ronald E. Powell, President, UFCW Local 881

Jan Schakowsky, Congresswoman, U.S. House of Representatives

Rebecca Shi, Executive Director, Illinois Business Immigration Coalition

Rabbi Michael Siegel, Senior Rabbi, Anshe Emet Synagogue

K. Sujata, President and CEO, Chicago Foundation for Women

Griselda Vega Samuel, Midwest Regional Counsel, MALDEF

Bishop E.L. Warren, Founder, Cathedral of Worship

Rev. Janette Wilson, Esq., National Director of PUSH Excel, Rainbow Push

Tom Yates, Executive Director, Legal Council for Health Justice

Thoughts?

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 9:08 am

Comments

With all these committees and all these names ready to go right out of the box, I’m thinking Pritzker started measuring the drapes some time before election day.

The public polls were awfully consistent and held up pretty well to the final result.

Comment by wordslinger Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 9:15 am
Prediction: $15 minimum wage phase-in proposal and elimination of 14(c) certificates that allow payment of wages to persons with physical disabilities below the state minimum wage.

Comment by Waffle Fries Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 9:32 am
===elimination of 14(c) certificates that allow payment of wages to persons with physical disabilities below the state minimum wage.===

Those certificates allow subminimum wages to paid to persons with all types of disabilities, not just physical. And government has been trending in the direction of eliminating these the past several years.

Comment by Cubs in '16 Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 9:52 am
“Prediction: $15 minimum wage phase-in proposal”

I wouldn’t call this a bold prediction.

Comment by Montrose Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:20 am
== elimination of 14(c) certificates that allow payment of wages to persons with physical disabilities below the state minimum wage. ==

And if that day comes, roughly 80%-85% of the people working under 14c will likely no be working anywhere due to their general work speed. How many employers are going to hire and keep someone who needs two hours to do a one hour job? Careful with what you wish for.

Comment by Anonymous Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:32 am
== elimination of 14(c) certificates that allow payment of wages to persons with physical disabilities below the state minimum wage. ==

And if that day comes, roughly 80%-85% of the people working under 14c will likely no be working anywhere due to their general work speed. How many employers are going to hire and keep someone who needs two hours to do a one hour job? Careful with what you wish for.

Comment by zatoichi Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:32 am
I sure hope farm workers are included in the new minimum wage requirements.

Comment by Da Big Bad Wolf Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:44 am
If there are more committees/members to be named, it may become more efficient to note all those NOT on a committee/ s

Comment by Matts Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:51 am
===roughly 80%-85% of the people working under 14c will likely no be working anywhere due to their general work speed.===

Exactly. But the Feds think these folks are being held back from meeting their true potential by continuing to work in sheltered employment. Their rationale is not based in reality.

Comment by Cubs in '16 Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:56 am
>How many employers are going to hire and keep someone who needs two hours to do a one hour job?

Tons, and with gratitude. Google “customized employment.” The challenge is in providing the supports needed. Supporting people at special minimum wages in a sheltered workshop has a certain amount of overhead, which contract income helps to cover, and a certain supervisor/worker ratio needed depending on the individual and on the job. Employment in the community (generalizing here, and tending to think more specifically of adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities) often requires individualized transportation plus 1:1 staff supports. It can also require a lot of time spent finding the right job match to make it a great thing for both the person and the employer.

People with disabilities should be working in the community and not segregated in sheltered workshops, and should be able to make a living wage without losing eligibility for the supports they need. That said, do you eliminate one option and not fund supports to replace it? And, does a state that pours incredible amounts of money into maintaining an outdated institutional system prioritize the elimination of community-based sheltered workshops as a first priority?

Comment by Earnest Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 11:05 am
Why are we talking about disabled people as if they’re worthless? Every person has intrinsic value and this can’t be measures by work speed.

Comment by Informed Mom Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 11:39 am
Impressive pedigrees. A good chunk of their time needs to be spent on repairs, and restoration, rather than new programs. Think honey bear and frontline. Start with the audits. Cold truth.

Comment by Langhorne Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 1:30 pm
Do the multiplication: multiple committees with multiple members multiplies into multiple fundraising cash.

Comment by justacitizen Monday, Nov 19, 18 @ 10:00 pm
Sadly missing from leading disability advocacy rights group initiatives to end the 14c specialized wage program and freeze admissions/close IL State Operated Develop Centers (SODC) are any requirements to measure and publicly communicate the impacts experienced by the affected individuals currently being served under these programs. Transparency must accompany any and all I/DD policy actions. Many leading advocacy orgs also rely on public grant based funding so need to acknowledge their potential conflicts of interest.

Comment by Pragmatic advocate Tuesday, Nov 20, 18 @ 10:51 am