The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is celebrating its 40th year of existence. This organization has advocated for the city’s most vulnerable people for decades now. Whether it’s helping families find housing, or assisting people in fighting unjust fees from landlords and lawyers, the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is always there to help.
Over the years, one of the most important missions of this organization is to educate the public in general. The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is always taking steps to help make a mostly invisible population understood. Part of this is by giving homeless and recently homeless people a platform where they can share their experiences. Another way the organization does this is by distributing news. CCH is always spreading the word about new initiatives and just new trends within the city.
For example, as the number of homeless families has grown, CPS has taken steps to address this change. The agency is now using homeless liaisons to serve homeless children. The shift from a homeless population of mostly single people to one that includes many children has been jarring. Families aren’t always aware of what their rights are in terms of issues like access to education. CPS liaisons are empowering people with knowledge.
Another way that CCH helps to spread information is by promoting documentaries. A great example of this is the TFIL film Frozen to Death: Homelessness in Chicago’s Lethal Winter. By helping to encourage this kind of media, CCH helps the public to understand the challenges faced by homeless Chicagoans every day throughout the year. One crucial aspect of CCH’s mission is that they don’t just work with the homeless. This organization also assists people who are at risk of homelessness due to low wages. They make it a point to communicate with middle-class people, to help them understand and repair the social problems that have led to mass homelessness.
The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is an independent non-profit organization. To preserve its independence, CCH never accepts government funding. They rely entirely on fundraising from the public. The people who work for CCH include people who work to influence public policy, public interest attorneys who work for homeless clients and community organizers.
Article originally published on RichardSimonChicago.net