image of PPE supplies including masks and hand sanitizer.

Keep Masks in Healthcare: National Week of Action

Hello Hello Everyone! Today (May 19)  is Day 5 of our week of actions, which is mask distribution day! We know that people are more likely to mask when they have easy access to them, and financial and logistical barriers to getting high quality masks like N95s and KN95s can mean people who want better…

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Meeting of the Art and Peer Support Group in the Conference Room of Progress Center's Office in Forest Park

END SUBMINIMUM WAGE: SUPPORT THE DIGNITY IN PAY ACT (HB 793, HFA 1)

There are only two days left in the Illinois Legislative Session. Here is an action alert directed at legislation that will help end sub minimum wage for people with disabilities. This action alert is from material by Equip for Equality and Access Living. A message from Equip for Equality: All, We have an opportunity to…

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image of a circular button. In the middle is the text "Vote" Below the text is a red area with white stars. Above the text is a blue area with White Stars

Action Alert: Support SB 282 — Accessible Vote by Mail in Illinois

Over the past two days, Access Living and Equip for Equality have posted action alerts to build support for SB 282, “which would create full Accessible Vote by Mail.”  Thank you to both organizations for creating alerts.  Below is the Access Living alert. Please read the alert below and take action by sending an email…

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Members of the Progress Center Community holding a banner that reads "Progress Center for Independent Living" at the Disability Pride Parade in Chicago.

Community mourns the loss of Disability Rights Champion Judith Heumann

Statement from Progress Center Executive Director Horacio Esparza on Judith Heumann English Language Statement Judy Heumann, Your unexpected departure left me inert, exhausted, without being able to articulate words for more than twenty-four hours, without knowing what to say about all that I can say about you… about how great you were; of everything great…

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A woman in a wheelchair, in the court yard of a nursing home, behind a fence with tall iron bars. Woman is holding a sign that says Nursing Home Residents and a sign that says Lives Matter

Humanize Long Term Care: Take Action to support IRRC Legislation

Here is information from the Institutional Rescue and Recovery Coalition. The coalition is in Springfield, Illinois this week, pushing three pieces of legislation in support people with disabilities in Illinois who need community-based supports and who need support getting out of long-term care facilities. From the Coalition: The disability-led Institutional Rescue and Recovery Coalition developed…

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Image with text that reads "Covid-19 Information."

Public Comment Submitted to the National Council on Disability — “Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19 on People with Disabilities and Underlying Medical Conditions: Challenging and Addressing the Failures of the CDC’s Current COVID-19 Guidelines.”

Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19 on People with Disabilities The National Council on Disability (NCD) hosted a Quarterly Meeting on December 8, 2022.  Kira Meskin, a Progress Center Community Reintegration Advocate, along with two others, submitted public comment to NCD for its quarterly meeting. The comments were accepted and incorporated into the record of the National…

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different images and messages related to Covid-19. Images include MaskUp Campaign, a person receiving a vaccination, text "Slow the Spread Answer the Call"; image of PPE and text Coronavirus

The Ending of the Public Health Emergency — May 11, 2023

This week, President Biden announced that the National Public Health Emergency connected to the Covid-19 Pandemic would end in the spring. The date for the end of the emergency is set as May 11, 2023.  Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois made a similar announcement. The end of the Public Health Emergency will impact millions of…

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Image Taken of Larry Biondi Legislative Training Graduates in 2019. Image includes Larry Biondi (send from left in front row) and Clark Craig, (far left in front row) and seven graduates in the back two rows. All graduates are holding certificates

The Larry Biondi Fellowship for Radical Thought & Action

Please consider a Year-End Donation to the Larry Biondi Fellowship for Radical Thought & Action Progress Center, in partnership with Chicago ADAPT, proudly announces the Larry Biondi Fellowship’s inaugural fundraising drive. We are setting an ambitious goal of $20,000 to underwrite the stipends and expenses of three Fellowship recipients in the 2023-24 class. The Larry…

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