Unions “send off” to pols. Demand action on HB174.
Representative Deb Mell’s office is just up Kedzie from Logan Square. It’s a different district than mine, but close. For those of you who don’t have a Chicago players roster, Deb is Machine Alderman Dick Mell’s daughter, sister-in-law of ex-governor Blago. She cast the one vote against impeachment. A profile in courage.
Yesterday, the sidewalk outside her district office looked like that of 3 others in Chicago.
About 30 people gathered outside Representative Deb Mell’s office in the 40th District at 3657 N. Kedzie Ave. in Albany Park today, chanting and circling her office in an effort to get her to support House Bill 174. The event was one of about 40 “send offs” held across the state — three of which were held in Chicago –organized by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), a union representing 1.6 million wokers, including caseworkers, nurses, corrections officers, child care providers, EMTs and sanitation workers, and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, among other groups statewide. Organizers and marchers are pushing for state representatives to sign HB174, which AFSCME believes modernizes the state’s tax structure by, along with other measures, raising the Individual Income Tax rate from 3 to 5 percent, and the Corporate Income Tax rate from 4.8 to 5 percent.
