Health care and child care workers, community members launch accountability rallies, call for action to prevent cuts

Statewide campaign protests representatives’ votes against the income tax increase needed to save essential services

Chicago – Health care and child care workers joined community advocates in rallies outside the district offices of State Representatives Jim Brosnahan, Kevin McCarthy and Mike Zalewski Thursday at the first of many statewide protests aimed at members of the Illinois House of Representatives who voted against an increase in the state’s income tax.

“Representatives Brosnahan, McCarthy and Zalewski let Illinois families like us down when they voted against the revenue needed to protect the programs we depend on,” said Tosha Kelly, a child care provider from Chicago. “Tens of thousands of working parents are going to lose the child care assistance that allows them to provide for their families and keep their children safe – all because these representatives put politics before people. They need to right their wrongs before it’s too late.”

Billions of dollars in cuts to critical human services programs are set to take effect July 1st – leaving 80,000 working parents without child care, over 40,000 seniors and people with disabilities without home care and countless other families devastated by drastic cuts to the programs they depend on.

“Where do legislators like Representative Brosnahan think seniors like me are going to go when we lose our home care?” asked 67-year-old Gloria Logan Brewer from Chicago. “I’ll be forced out of the home I love and into a nursing home I don’t need and can’t afford. These representatives need to come to their senses and tell their leaders that the better way to address this crisis is through a fair income tax increase, not a budget that will destroy families.”

“Time is running out for working families,” said Rebia Mixon, a home care worker from Chicago. “If Representative Zalewski and his colleagues don’t fix this, we’re looking at tens of thousands of seniors and people with disabilities on the streets, massive layoffs and rising unemployment at a time when we should be getting Illinois back on track. Our representatives need to stop playing games with peoples’ lives and get to work.”

Thursday’s rallies are the first in a series scheduled around the state in coming weeks. Protestors are calling on representatives to urge their leaders to return to Springfield to stop the cuts and pass needed revenue.

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