Critical Renters Ordinance Passed in Cook County

The Moran Center is pleased to announce the passing of the Residential Tenant Landlord Ordinance (RTLO), officially extending basic, fair, and long-overdue protections to renters and landlords in more than 245,000 suburban households, including renters served by the Moran Center. 

Moran staff attorney Megan McClung (pictured) served on the RTLO Advocates, a representative group for housing rights/legal aid agencies. McClung worked on reviewing and providing feedback on ordinance revisions, promoting awareness for the ordinance, and testified before the Cook County zoning board during the first attempt to pass the ordinance and again this week submitting written testimony to the zoning board. 

This new ordinance will help ensure the right of renters in suburban Cook County, like many of our clients. Too many of the people we’ve served have experienced lockouts, excessive move-in and late fees, and astronomical increases in rent. For clients of the Moran Center, this means they will be able to stay in their homes and get the support they need. 

You can read the full press release HERE.

A Restorative Partnership

The James B. Moran Center for Youth Advocacy gratefully announces that we received a grant from Healing Illinois and The Chicago Community Trust to fund Circle Up: Building a Restorative Community, a collaboration with Youth Job Center, Curt’s Cafe, and Evanston’s Youth & Young Adult Division offering restorative practices training to BIPOC emerging adults and elders in the City of Evanston. These circle keepers will facilitate and support community building, racial truth-telling, healing and welcoming circles in Evanston.

Stay tuned for more updates on future virtual events and information. Questions? Email Pam Cytrynbaum at pjc@moran-center.org

Transformational Legislative Victories in Springfield

Thanks to the leadership of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus and tireless advocates, the legislature passed transformational educational, criminal justice, and economic reforms in the waning hours of the 101st General Assembly. Of particular interest to the Moran Center for Youth Advocacy, are the following legislative proposals:
 
 
Carried by State Senator Kimberly Lightford and State Representative Carol Ammons, House Bill 2170 requires statewide kindergarten assessments to drive classroom instruction and measure students’ progress, acknowledges the impact of trauma on students’ learning, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, develops a framework for building restorative and trauma-informed schools, calls for the State to produce plans to tackle the inevitable learning loss stemming from the pandemic, establishes policies to address the underrepresentation of students of color in advanced high school classes, and mandates Illinois students learn about the “the history of the pre-enslavement of Black people from 3,000 BCE to AD 1619, the African slave trade, slavery in America, the study of the reasons why Black people came to be enslaved, the vestiges of slavery in this country, and the study of the American civil rights renaissance.” Special thanks to our partners at the Illinois Collaboration on Youth for their efforts in drafting this proposal and effectively advocating for its passage!
 
 
Written by advocates from the Coalition to End Money Bond, including our partners at the ACLU of Illinois, A Just Harvest, Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice, Chicago Community Bond Fund, Illinois Justice Project, and the Shriver Center on Poverty Law, and sponsored by State Senator Elgie Sims and State Representative Justin Slaughter, House Bill 3653 comprises 764 pages and promises a comprehensive array of criminal justice reforms, including the Pretrial Fairness Act, ending money bond in Illinois by 2023. 
 
 
On January 13th, both houses of the Illinois legislature passed the Employee Background Fairness Act, Senate Bill 1480, which would make employment discrimination based on a conviction record a civil rights violation under the Illinois Human Rights Act. The Employee Background Fairness Act would also overhaul the troublesome background check process, which has long been one of the most difficult hurdles for those with prior convictions in securing employment, including for those assisted by the Moran Center’s Expungement & Sealing Help Desk.
 
The Public Housing Access Bill, Senate Bill 1980, championed by Senator Christopher Belt and State Representative Sonya Harper, creates new standards for the Public Housing Authorities of Illinois when going through their criminal background screening process. The proposal would reduce Housing Authorities’ abilities to use criminal records in considering housing applications and sets-up due process hearings for applicants to plead their cases if denied housing. This Act aims to alleviate the high rate of homelessness among people with prior convictions and reduce recidivism stemming from such disenfranchisement.
 
The Employee Background Fairness Act and Public Housing Access Bill passed the Illinois General Assembly because of the tenacity of the Restoring Rights and Opportunities Coalition of Illinois, including our close partners at Cabrini Green Legal Aid.
 
 
We now urge Governor Pritzker to sign House Bill 2170, House Bill 3653, Senate Bill 1480, and Senate Bill 1980 into law to repair historic institutional injustices that have disproportionately impacted Black and Brown Illinoisans for generations. This is justice, and justice changes everything!
 

Board Chair Betsy Lehman’s remarks from the Evanston Women’s March

Board Chair Betsy Lehman gave remarks at the Evanston Women’s March on Saturday, October 17, 2020 at Dawes Park.

Thank you so much for inviting me to speak today.  It’s an honor and a privilege.

I am Betsy Lehman, Chair of the Board of Directors for the James B Moran Center for Youth Advocacy.  For those of you who don’t know the Moran Center, we provide integrated legal and social work services for youth and young adults up to age 26.  We also provide educational advocacy, run a school-based civil legal clinic in partnership with District 65, operate a criminal records expungement and sealing help desk at the Skokie Courthouse, and advocate for a “Restorative Community,” among many other efforts to address the critical needs of Evanston youth and their families.

We are all painfully aware of the injustice and inequity that lives in our criminal justice and policing systems.  It has been used as a tool to oppress and control.  We see it regularly on a national level in the horrific violence against George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, our own Jacob Blake, and far too many others.  We’ve seen it in our state where racially disparate policies such as “stop and frisk” violate basic constitutional guarantees against unlawful search and seizure, and where meaningful police reform continues to be a battle every step of the way.  And we see it right here in Evanston, where youth of color are disproportionately disciplined and suspended from our schools.

Let me give you just a few facts:

  • 2019 data from the Prison Policy Initiative showed that, on any given day, close to 50,000 youth are confined in facilities away from their homes—most in locked, prison-style spaces; 40% of these facilities isolate youth in locked rooms for periods of four hours or more, and 43% use restraints such as hand/leg cuffs and strait jackets;

  • Black youth are arrested, and confined to juvenile institutions, far out of proportion to their share of all youth in the US; in IL, the ACLU estimates that Black youth are incarcerated at 5 times the rate of White youth;

  • As Covid-19 spread across the US, the number of Latinx and Native American youth in detention facilities actually increased, despite calls for  juveniles to be released;
  • Marijuana usage rates are similar among white and Black Americans, however Black Americans are more than 3 1/2 times as likely to be arrested on possession charges; legalization and decriminalization has not changed this;
  • At the end of 2018, the Pew Research Center found that the imprisonment rate among Black Americans was more than five times the rate among whites; a generation of Black fathers has been lost to incarceration.

    These are just a handful of examples of the devastating results of the systemic racism inherent in the criminal justice system.  (Or as, Patrick Keenan-Devlin, the ED of Moran likes to say, “the criminal injustice system.’”)  We demand a system that will bring true justice to those in it.  A system that is rehabilitative and restorative to both victim and offender.  A system that asks what one needs, not just what one has done.  A system that not only rejects, but protects against the criminalization of poverty and mental illness.  A system that refuses to funnel black and brown bodies into institutions or legitimizes their murders.

    The Moran Center is advocating every day for policies that support women and families in Evanston and the values that I know we all share—education, healing, compassion, support of the most vulnerable members of our community, and, to paraphrase Bryan Stevenson, one of my heroes, not judging anyone—especially children—by the worst thing they have ever done.

    We stand together today in solidarity with these values.  Make no mistake.  Justice is on the ballot.  Join me in demanding a government that is committed to these principles:

  • a community where basic needs are met, and all members have the opportunity to thrive;

  • an educational system that is equitable and supportive of students with special needs, and looks at each child as an individual;

  • a robust commitment to mental health;

  • a commitment to protect the rights of those people and communities that have historically been persecuted and disinvested; and

  • a criminal justice system—from policing to sentencing—that rejects mass incarceration, over-criminalization, and is guided by the principles of fairness and racial equity.
And while these values are completely absent at the highest level of our government, it’s also essential to vote for leaders who reflect this vision all the way down the ballot.
 
This is not just about the White House or the Senate.  It’s the statehouse, it’s county-wide and local government, and it’s the judiciary.  Get out there and vote!
 
Thank you.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Justice Amplified

Ruth Bader Ginsburg–a woman of firsts, who dedicated her life and her life’s work to those who are counted last.

Famous for challenging gender inequality and discrimination, Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg advanced a liberal jurisprudence for the benefit of all Americans denied equality and victimized by discrimination.  It is called “justice.”  

She did not achieve this accidentally, but created a vision, adopted a strategy, pursued her goals, and worked tirelessly–all because she believed “justice demands.”

At the James B. Moran Center, Ruth Bader Ginsburg is not only our model and inspiration, she is our colleague, our co-worker, and OUR SISTER!

John Lewis’s Loving Light

Moran Center Executive Director Patrick Keenan-Devlin recently wrote this piece reflecting on the late Congressman John Lewis’ visit to Chicago/Evanston, Illinois in 2018 – sharing what he witnessed to inspire others to see children, young people, “through [John Lewis’s] loving light.”

Congressman John Lewis walked up the stairs of the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, (i.e., Cook County’s jail for children) and was greeted by six teenagers wearing gold jackets over their JTDC-issued, navy blue sweatshirts. “These are the Ambassadors, young people who’ve attained the highest number of points possible while in the Detention Center. They’ll be giving you the official tour today, Congressman,” Deputy Superintendent Diane McGhee said. The teenagers then led us in and out of classrooms and down, winding corridors, speaking with authority and purpose. Ms. McGhee and I trailed behind. She then leaned in, pointing out the one young woman Ambassador. “She’ll be leaving us soon, and I’m just heartbroken. She’s been here for four years… She pleaded guilty to murder earlier this year, and will likely be sentenced to another two years next month…” 

At that moment, the young woman stepped into the “Barber Shop” with Congressman Lewis, proudly explaining how she recently graduated from the Center’s hairstylist program with high honors. Congressman Lewis then proudly and tenderly assured his young guides, “No one has forgotten you. There is reason to hope, and you guys give me hope.” To our community, our system, these youth were monsters who needed to be silenced and cast aside; but to John Lewis, they were the future, and he heard them, and he loved them.  

At the Illinois Youth Center-Chicago (i.e., a state prison for children), we sat in plastic folding chairs in what appeared like a typical school gymnasium and listened to youth in the Storycatchers Theatre Program perform, “Imagine More,” a collection of original stories and songs on the theme of heroes and mentors. Following the performance, John Lewis dragged his chair up to the front of the gymnasium and offered to answer questions. A young man in the back row timidly raised his hand.

Congressman Lewis called on him, and the young man shot up from his seat like a rocket. I don’t remember the question that the young man posed or the response offered by the Congressman, but what’s seared in my memory is the image of this young man standing perfectly straight throughout Congressman Lewis’s lengthy answer to his question. The Congressman asked “You’re still standing?! Do you have another question?” “No,” the young man said solemnly. “I just wanted to thank you for answering me.” 

The magnitude of this moment was unmistakable. In witnessing the weight of this young man’s physical gesture and his plain, yet heartfelt expression of gratitude, all I could think was “How many adults had failed to listen to this young man?” And yet, there was John Lewis, Civil Rights icon and U.S. Congressman, listening. Listening to the silenced. 

For 24 hours in March last year, I had the profound privilege of accompanying Congressman John Lewis and his co-author of their book series, March, Andrew Aydin, on tours of the JTDC and IYC-Chicago. It feels greedy, now  – as our nation mourns his unfathomable loss and celebrates his extraordinary life – not to share what I witnessed. If we are to be judged by how we treat our most vulnerable, the least of us, then John Lewis was the most of us, by any measure.

He radically heard and saw and loved those children, those children we’ve judged beyond redemption, cast aside, and shunned. He saw hope, humanity, possibility. And his vision reflected back to those young people, who saw themselves through his eyes. And they became those possibilities right then and there. All I could think, all I can think, is what if we all saw all our children in that light, through his eyes. What if we saw and heard and loved them as they deserved? What if the system was designed to rise to support, educate, and defend them instead of for the sole purpose of crushing them.

John Lewis loved, inspired, and heard the kids detained at the JTDC and IYC-Chicago. Not transformational, yet transformational. Not revolutionary, yet revolutionary. Not radical, yet radical. 

As our nation mourns and honors Congressman Lewis, Evanston, our community, must face our own mourning and reckoning. We will lay to rest three young men, all victims of gun violence. With their deaths, our community tragically loses not only these young men but those who caused this harm and pain, their assailants. All those who love these young people are suffering. The ripple effects are ongoing. The grief, ceaseless. What would John Lewis do, see, hear or say? How would he look at our children? We say we want to honor his legacy, his vision. What if we saw all our children through his loving light.  

Written by Patrick Keenan-Devlin, Executive Director, James B. Moran Center for Youth Advocacy

 

Moran Center condemns structural racism and supports Black Americans

The Moran Center profoundly condemns the violence of structural racism born out by the recent killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, as well as the failure of our nation’s public and private systems to address the deadly racial disparities resulting in the disproportionate loss of Black lives. We recommit to confronting and dismantling racism within our institutions and ourselves. We recommit to seeking justice and achieving liberation for the youth of color and families that we serve. We recommit to putting our bodies upon the lethal gears of state-sponsored oppression. We recommit to having youth of color and their families guide our organizational decisionmaking, ensuring that our work is truly for, by, and with the community we serve. And, we reaffirm that Black Lives Matter. How we act, and not what we write or say, will ultimately demonstrate our commitments and affirmations.

 

From the Executive Director 

 
I caused harm. I caused harm to a friend and colleague by sharing that despite the crushing violence and suffering presently experienced by my Black brothers and sisters, I remained hopeful. My friend wept because she is not free to experience such hope. For her, today, hope is triggering and distant. Witnessing her pain reminded me that while it’s easy for me to drown out the vitriol and violence perpetrated against our Black brethren, for my friends and colleagues of color it’s impossible. I can choose to forget; my Black friends and colleagues do not have such freedom or luxury.


Worse yet, I allowed myself to indulge in this ignoble comfort, shielded my noble work.  Every day I advocate on behalf of Black and Brown youth and their families, preserving their liberties and rights in the courtroom, in the classroom, and in the community, but this work does not absolve me of the obligation to practice radical accompaniment and action-inspiring outrage. In fact, it should compel me to swifter action, swifter condemnation. I will give myself no breaks.

There must be no lines between my children and our children. For our community to thrive, we must live, act, and feel our interdependence. What does that mean? It means that I am committed – now more than ever – to fight for structural and communal transformation. As our nation witnesses yet another killing of a Black American by an agent of the State, it is the absolute obligation for those of us who have the privilege of choice to remain proximate to those who are suffering and to change not just narratives but unjust laws, public policies, and structures.

It is a privilege to carry hope. It is my privilege. It is also my responsibility to act – standing up, stepping back, working with, and not for. This is the responsibility of all of us lifted by unearned privilege, most especially my White brothers and sisters.  And so, I recommit myself to the work of transformation and radical change on behalf of my friend, for whom today hope is an illusion, and for her children, who are my children, who are our children, to work harder on behalf of their lives.

Yours,

Patrick Keenan-Devlin
Executive Director.

Continuing to Build Justice during COVID-19

Dear Friends:

I wanted to take a moment to share with you the steps that the Moran Center for Youth Advocacy has taken and is taking to ensure the safety of our clients and staff during the present outbreak. 

The Moran Center has instituted flexible workplace policies effective until further notice to slow the spread of COVID-19, as well as accommodate vulnerable staff and team members who must now care for out-of-school children. We will, however, remain in touch with staff throughout this period to monitor their health and the health of their family members to ensure the ongoing safety and well-being of the Moran Center and the wider community. 

We’ve thankfully built an infrastructure that allows staff to maintain their critical responsibilities outside of the office. This both supports the health of our team and ensures that the Moran Center’s services will not be interrupted. We still encourage clients and community members to call the Moran Center at 847-492-1410 with any inquiries, given that attorneys and social workers are able to respond remotely. Unless an individual has a confirmed appointment, they will not be able to access the Moran Center’s Office. 

The Moran Center’s attorneys have continued to appear for court hearings as per judicial order with the courts now partially re-opened as of Monday, July 6th.

Starting the third week of March, the Moran Center’s Expungement & Sealing Help Desk at the Skokie Courthouse halted operations at the Skokie Courthouse, but please call 224-616-5372 for assistance in the meantime or complete our new online intake form via Illinois Legal Aid Online for assistance.

Likewise, the Moran Center’s School-Based Civil Legal Clinic at Evanston/Skokie School District 65 will not operate in-person until further notice, so please direct all inquiries to 224-714-0518 or, again, complete our new online intake form via Illinois Legal Aid Online for assistance.

In light of school closures, we encourage parents and students to refer to ETHS and District 65’s websites for information regarding both districts’ e-learning plans. For caregivers of children with special needs and students with special needs, please refer to Guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Education and Illinois State Board of Education regarding your rights and the obligations of our local educational systems to accommodate children’s educational needs during the school closure period. If clients are having trouble accessing remote learning due to a disability or financial resources they can contact the Moran Center for assistance by phone, 224-420-7709, or email, sfrudden@moran-center.org.

Despite the turbulence of these times, the Moran Center for Youth Advocacy continues building justice – ensuring justice in the courtroom, access to the classroom, and support in the community for all youth and their families.

Please take care of yourselves and each other. 

Yours,

Patrick Keenan-Devlin
Executive Director/Staff Attorney

 

Check out the Moran Center’s COVID-19 Resources Webpage for additional information.

Moran Center’s Virtual Night of (Re)Building Justice: Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who joined us during our virtual gala on May 21st.  We appreciated the opportunity to share how we at the Moran Center “build justice” for youth and families. We hope you enjoyed the insightful and thought-provoking discussion with our honorees and Pulitzer Prize finalists Earlonne Woods and Nigel Poor of Ear Hustle. It truly was an inspiring event! If you didn’t catch us live, the entire gala is now available to watch on our YouTube channel below.

Our virtual gala was produced by BON Events. Be sure to book BON for your next event: virtual and in-person. 

Online program with Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods of Ear Hustle and Jenn White of WBEZ.

Thanks to your generosity, we exceeded our fundraising goal! 

The Moran Center for Youth Advocacy truly has the most generous, spirited, and loyal supporters. We appreciate your commitment in helping us RESPOND to the urgent needs of our clients, RENEW their outlook on life and REBUILD a better future, for them and their families.

Often, we have clients who ask: Is it too late to turn my life around? Our answer: absolutely not!

We’ve never had a gala without serving Judge Moran’s secret sauce. In this socially distant year, Moran Center board member Marea Brichta reveals the recipe for Expungement Punch! Click here to get the ingredients.

Moran Center Receives $25,000 Grant from Access to Justice

EVANSTON, IL – January 23, 2020 – The Moran Center for Youth Advocacy is pleased to announce that it has received a $25,000 grant from Access to Justice, a statewide program that seeks to mitigate the devastating consequences of incarceration and family separation. The funds will go to support and enhance our Expungement & Sealing Help Desk at the Skokie Courthouse.

For 10 years, the Moran Center has provided free, self-help legal assistance to individuals desiring criminal record remediation through our Help Desk. This grant will help expand our services including hosting a Record Relief Summit.

“The Moran Center works innovatively to dismantle the destructive pipelines to dysfunctional institutions that impact people of color and families in poverty,” Patrick Keenan-Devlin, executive director of the Moran Center said. “With this grant, we will ensure more people have access to clear their criminal backgrounds, unlocking the door to a better and more productive future.”

The Moran Center was one of 60 non-profit organizations selected as a recipient of the Access to Justice Grant Program.

With recent legislation expanding the range of offenses eligible for sealing, the Moran Center has seen a 15 percent increase in requests for assistance at the Help Desk. The Help Desk is open two mornings a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 am to Noon at the Skokie Courthouse.

ABOUT THE MORAN CENTER

The Moran Center for Youth Advocacy (“Moran Center”) has been a zealous advocate for thousands of disinvested youth and their families for 39 years.  Providing integrated legal and social work services, the Moran Center works to ensure justice in the courtroom, access to the classroom, and support in the community. Through legal representation, advocacy, trauma-informed social work services, and restorative community work, we aim to dismantle the destructive school-to-prison, poverty-to-prison pipelines, which disproportionately drive low-income children, families, youth of color, and children with special needs out of our community and into broken institutions. Learn more about our work at www.moran-center.org.