TEACH-INS & DIALOGUES

09/29/22

“Message to the Mayor” Campaign

For this Teach-In, Working Family Solidarity’s “Message to the Mayor” campaign and the Citywide Equitable Development Roundtable (CEDR) unite to mobilize Chicagoans to learn about the City’s New Development Plan and to give feedback to the Mayor and the Dept. of Planning & Development. Co-presenters Kevin Johnson, Community Organizer with WFS, and Chris White, Organizing Director with Alliance of the Southeast (ASE), will discuss why this Development Plan is important. Along with how it will affect jobs, housing, zoning, green spaces, transportation and many other aspects in the years to come.

08/31/22

Youth of Color Building Solidarity for Better Jobs

For this panel presentation/discussion, which is the second part of our Youth of Color United for Jobs series, Illie Benton and Kevin Anzures, activists with Working Family Solidarity, are co-presenters. They will discuss how youth of color can build unity around this issue, as well as building the solidarity needed to create more good jobs for Chicago youth, both regarding more workplace rights and the creation of more jobs with good pay and benefits. Following their opening presentations, several other African Americans and Latinx youth participate in the discussion.

07/27/22

Youth of Color United for Jobs

This webinar has co-presenters Kevin Anzures and Illie Benton, young activists with Working Family Solidarity, talking about the need for better jobs for the Chicago youth, regarding workplace rights, and creating more good jobs. Both will share their experiences and insights, as will several youth of color who participate in the discussion.

06/29/22

City's New Development Plan

In this Teach-In Webinar, panelists Chris White (Citywide Equitable Development Organizer with ASE/Alliance of the Southeast), Gianna Baker (Co-Executive Director of CAFHA/Chicago Area Fair Housing Alliance), and Esmeralda de la Rosa (member-leader with Working Family Solidarity) talk about the city updating its master land-use plan for the first time since the late 1960’s. WFS wants the community to be heard in order to help shape this new plan.

05/26/22

Local Hire/Targeted Hire - Getting Access to Good Jobs

For this webinar, our three panelists Kassie Beyer (Illinois Statewide Director, Jobs to Move America), Tameka Gavin (Case Management Team/Peace Circle, Restorative Justice Cook County, Englewood area), and community activist Dolores Castañeda (UIC School of Public Health, and the Greater Lawndale Healthy Work project) talk about the efforts in the Chicago area, and beyond at, at job creation and equitable hiring practices.

04/27/22

Workplace Health and Safety Laws: Know Your Rights

This webinar focuses on "Workplace Injuries, and Workplace Health & Safety Laws.” The main presenter is Jose Rivero, a worker's compensation attorney with Cullen Hasken Nicholson Menchetti. Jose is a long-time Working Family Solidarity supporter and has conducted workshops for WFS members and community members. Also, Esmeralda, a Working Family Solidarity member, speaks about her workplace injury and winning a compensation settlement.

03/30/22

AN UPDATE ON RENTAL/MORTGAGE ASSISTANCE, AND FIGHTING EVICTIONS

In this Teach-In, presenters discuss what housing assistance (mainly rental and mortgage) is available and what we're presently seeing in the eviction court system. As well as sharing important information about several housing rights campaigns on which Working Family Solidarity and other organizations are currently working. Leone Jose Bicchieri (Executive Director, Working Family Solidarity) is the moderator, joined by Julia Peña (member of Working Family Solidarity), alongside the following panelists: Foluke Akanni (Housing Policy Organizer, Housing Action Illinois), Antoinette Bolz (Attorney, Lawyers Committee for Better Housing, Chicago COVID-19 Eviction Prevention Program), and Sharon Norwood (Organizer, Working Family Solidarity). Spanish interpretation is available during this webinar.

02/23/22

Workplace Violence Agaist WomeN Teach-IN

Presenters: Julia Peña (member of Working Family Solidarity), shared her sexual harassment and sexual assult at her former workplace, Angelica (VOCA Community Organizer in the Community Wellness Program at St. Anthony Hospital), Jorge Sanchez (attorney with Lopez & Sanchez, LLC), and Rev. Falicia Campbell (Pastor and Director of For Your Consciousness Ministry). The presentation focuses on people's own experiences of violence against women in the workplace, especially women of color. As well as talking about ways we can be proactive against this unacceptable behavior.

10/27/21

Rental Assitance & REsisting Evictions P.2 Teach-In

Our third Teach-In in a row which focuses on helping working families stay in their homes as pandemic-related eviction moratoria end. In collaboration with the Chicago Public Library. Panel presentation with questions and comments afterward. Presenters: Daniel Hertz (Policy Director, Chicago Dept. of Housing), Lilian Jimenez (Associate Director, Welcoming Centers for Immigrants & Refugees, IL Dept. of Human Services), and Sally Robinson (Staff Attorney, Lawyers Committee for Better Housing).

09/29/21

Rental Assistance & Resisting Evictions P.1 Teach-IN

A panel presents on resources available and how to deal with potential evictions. Panel comprised of, Foluke Akanni (Housing Action Illinois), Michael Chavarria (Housing Choice Partners and Illinois Coalition for Fair Housing), and Nazem Shamira (Chicago Bar Foundation and Cook County Legal Aid for Housing & Debt). Followed by questions and comments.

07/29/21

What to do When the eviction moratorium End teach-in

Several panel presenters talk about ways we can prepare for Illinois' current date of ending the eviction moratorium in the neat future. Followed by questions and comments. Presenters are Sharon Norwood (Working Family Solidarity's Community Organizer), Gianna Baker (Co-Director, Chicago Area Fair Housing Alliance), and Antoinette Bolz (Chicago COVID-19 Eviction Prevention Project, at the Lawyers Committee for Better Housing).

06/24/21

Women’s rights: facing multiple types of opression dialogue

Five women, WFS members and supporters - Tameka Gavin, Claudia Galeno, Asia Anderson, Karina Rodriguez, and Brigida Proto - offer comments on the how working women, especially women of color, face various types of disrespect and oppressive treatment. Then the session is opened up to questions, comments, and discussion.

05/27/21

Blacks & Latinx: What does solidarity look like? Dialogue

In this dialogue, we consider the following three questions: What are the obstacles to our unity?; Who benefits from our lack of unity?; What would it mean to be in solidarity with each other? We begin with brief remarks from Working Family Solidarity staff, members, and other leaders, to set the stage, and then open it up to questions, comments, and discussion on how our two communities can build solidarity to reach racial equality and economic justice.

04/29/2021

Workplace Deaths & accidents among low-wage workers teach-in

Presenters Dolores Castaneda (Chicago immigrant rights and worker rights activist), and Yvette Castaneda (PhD, teacher and worker rights activist) discuss poverty, low-wage work, and workplace health & safety issues.

03/20/21

racism & worker opression in the U.S. and Europe Teach-IN

All four presenters join us from Europe and Africa. Antonello Mangano from Rome (on racism and the treatment of African immigrants), Brigida Proto from Paris together with Aida Fall from Dakar, Senegal (on the experiences of African market traders in Italy & the racism they experience), and Abraham Mwaura from Geneva (on the white power movement, and the current African slave trade). The presentation focuses on how racism and worker oppression function similarly, and a bit differently in the U.S. and in Europe.

Antonello Mangano’s presentation

Antonello Mangano’s presentation was part of our 03/20/21 Teach-In, but for technical reasons, it did not properly record. Here is his presentation on racism and anti-immigrant sentiment in Italy.

02/25/21

White supremacy: organized hate in the U.S. teach-in

Opening remarks by Rev. David Ostendorf (Founding Executive Director of the Center for New Community), now retired, talks about his many years of organizing for justice and against racism in rural, mostly-white, communities in the Mid-West & Plain states. Respondent Abraham Mwaura (worker rights & racial activist), joins us from Geneva, Switzerland, to comment on Rev. Ostendorf's remarks, before we begin questions and comments.

01/28/21

the african american experience & anti-black racism Dialoge

Working Family Solidarity Board member Rev. Falicia Campbell starts us off with some comments and personal experiences, then various participants add comments and engage in a discussion about the continued oppression of Black people. Participants share both their analysis as well as their families' personal experiences of being disrespected and abused for being Black.

12/10/20

anti-immigrant sentiment & xenophobia: why does this still persist so stronly today? Dialogue

This Dialogue had brief introductory comments by Leone Jose Bicchieri (Executive Director, Working Family Solidarity), and Adriana Avila-McClintock (Communications Development Professional & Worker Rights Advocate). After the initial comments on the topic, the dialogue was opened up to comments and discussion.

10/28/20

communities of color unite Teach-In

Benetta Standly finishes her three-part Teach-In series by presenting on historical examples of people of color uniting to fight for our rights, and the importance of such unity. Question and comment period follows.

10/07/20

mass incarceration: Black & brown bodies in the system Dialogue

Benetta Standly presents the second Teach-In in the three-part series, focusing on our current Criminal Justice System, and how it disproportionately affects African Americans and Latinx people. Question and comment period follows.

09/16/20

Civil Rights: Past, Present, and Future Teach-In

Benetta Standly, Civil Rights Expert and a Founding Board member of Working Family Solidarity, presents on the history of several key moments in the civil rights struggle in the U.S. This is the first Teach-In in the three-part series with Ms. Standly as the main presenter. Questions and comment period follows.