Chicagoans Rally for Change

By: Ashmar Mandou

Lawndale News Chicago's Bilingual Newspaper - Business

Thousands rally across the city of Chicago to ‘take back the city’ and hold banks responsible for their lack of action. Chicagoans representing dozens of community and labor organizations began five separate issue marches from education, foreclosures, and unemployment.

Thousands of Chicago residents kicked off a week of action hosting simultaneous marches across Chicago on Monday afternoon in an effort to ‘take back the city of Chicago’ from ‘corporate greed’. “Both my wife and I lost our jobs,” said Alfonso Pulido, a Brighton Park resident who attended the march and rally. Pulido represented thousands who were out demanding solutions to the high unemployment rate, high foreclosures, and Chicago Public Schools. “They say the recession is over, but if that’s the case then why did I get laid off? The big banks are making billions of dollars and giving their CEOs record salaries, what about the rest of us? Families and neighborhoods are hurting, and we’re here to say, ‘Enough is enough.’”

Lawndale News Chicago's Bilingual Newspaper - BusinessTuesday marked ‘Taking Back Our Homes,’ in which dozens of community members convened to hold banks such as, Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo accountable for the ‘damage they have caused.’ The day of action began with community members coming together to clean up vacant and destroyed properties owned by Bank of America and Chase. “Chicago has the largest inventory of abandoned homes in the nation, many of which are now owned by big banks like Chase,” said a Brighton Park Neighborhood Council spokesperson. “When the banks kick people out of foreclose properties, they have an obligation to maintain those properties, and that is not happening. We are here to tell Chase that it is time they cleaned up the mess they created in our neighborhoods.” On Wednesday, hundreds of Chicago Teachers Union members, community allies and Chicago families converged on Bank of America’s headquarters to demand that the bank renegotiate financial deals with city schools that ‘deprive children of millions of dollars in funding annually.’

“Bank of America owes Chicago Public Schools over $16 million after donating a pittance of $1 million to after school programs,” said Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis. Renegotiating would save CPS $5 million and help close the school budget deficits that have resulted in layoffs and increased class sizes.

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