Speaking before a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor JB Pritzker delivered his annual State of the State and Budget address on February 15, 2023. With an outlook for “better outcomes and better futures for Illinoisans,” Governor Pritzker outlined his $49.6 billion Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget that...
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“I don’t prescribe those kinds of medicines” the older, White, gray-haired physician said in his judgmental southern drawl. I am sitting in this exam room at the public health department in Mobile, Alabama with a mix of emotions. I am grateful for the partner that thought enough of me after our encounter to provide my contact information so that I may receive STI testing...
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By Omar Martínez González, Sr. Manager, Policy & Advocacy
CHICAGO, IL — AIDS Foundation Chicago (AFC) celebrates Friday’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill cleared the Senate last week and is headed to President Biden for his signature. AFC cheers the provisions that will allow the federal...
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By Omar Martínez González, Senior Manager, Policy & Advocacy
Photo credited to Omar Martínez González
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) issued a devastating blow to the right of women and pregnant people to access safe abortion services. Not only did it give Mississippi the green light to enforce its harmful 15-week...
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On Thursday, April 8, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) echoed a deep, unconscionable truth that Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) have known and experienced all along: racism is a public health threat . CDC’s new agency-wide initiative called Racism and Health aims to “refocus the CDC’s public health efforts on recognizing, acknowledging,...
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The jury in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin has returned guilty verdicts for the Minneapolis police officer who murdered George Floyd in May 2020. Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
George Floyd’s death reignited a nationwide movement to reform policing and law enforcement practices, systems that were developed to...
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A police shooting near Decatur, Georgia has led to the killing of yet another Black man.
Matthew Zadok Williams, the youngest of six children and the only son, was killed by Dekalb County Police in his own home on April 12, 2021. His mother and family were not notified until nearly 24 hours later.
In the words of Matthew’s sister, “Matthew was a son, brother, uncle, cousin,...
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We are hurt and angered by Daunte Wright’s death at the hands of a police officer in Minnesota on Sunday, April 11. Daunte’s murder tells the same story of broken policing and law enforcement systems throughout our country that continue to ravage Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities, and take the lives of the very individuals the police are sworn to protect.
The...
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By Ella Shapiro
Jade Greear, a member of AIDS Foundation Chicago (AFC)’s associate board, is excited about this summer and the opportunity to go out more in the upcoming months. Jade’s optimism is something that many of us have not felt while enduring the COVID-19 pandemic, but Jade has good reason to feel optimistic. She’s fully vaccinated against COVID-19. ...
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By Ella Shapiro
Working as a server can be incredibly stressful. During my shifts I am constantly multitasking: running food, taking orders and calming upset customers. I prepare each day by stocking extra plates and silverware, making sure I know the daily specials and fluffing the cushions on each chair. I prepare like this in the hopes my shift will run more smoothly. But being...
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