by COFI Admin | Aug 25, 2020 | Stepping Out of Poverty
This summer, after years of organizing and advocacy, POWER-PAC IL parents won a historic agreement to make utilities more affordable in Illinois, one of the most comprehensive utility-focused relief plans in the country. The Town Hall On August 7th, POWER-PAC IL...
by COFI Admin | Aug 5, 2020 | In the Media, Stepping Out of Poverty
“Rosazlia Grillier, an activist in Chicago, helped spearhead a campaign in her hometown for debt relief and affordable bills. Other goals in this movement include customer service that does not look down upon people, less cumbersome paperwork in applying for...
by COFI Admin | Jun 23, 2020 | In the Media, Stepping Out of Poverty
“Rosazlia Grillier, a mother who lives in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood, said the pandemic ‘has added to the nightmare that people were already living every single day.’ ‘However, the bright side of [the pandemic] is it has brought to the...
by COFI Admin | Jun 1, 2020 | In the Media, Stepping Out of Poverty
“The agreement was a several-week’s process between Raoul’s office and the Citizens Utility Board, Community Organizing and Family Issues, and Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Family Services negotiating with the ICC and utility companies. ‘Parents were...
by COFI Admin | May 11, 2020 | In the Media, Stepping Out of Poverty
“I think people, for the most part, who are not paying these fines and fees, are not doing so because they can’t afford it,” said Occomy Crowder. “The system itself is not providing affordable ways for them to actually pay the debt. It’s just kind of a backdoor way of...
by COFI Admin | Sep 30, 2019 | City of Chicago, POWER-PAC IL, Stepping Out of Poverty
In less than two years of organizing and advocacy by POWER-PAC IL’s Stepping Out of Poverty Campaign, Chicago has taken the first step to reforming its fees and fines system! On January 18, 2018, parents published the “Stopping the Debt Spiral” report exposing the...