About 20 members of the Alliance for Community Services, opposed to cuts and closure of IL Human Services,
occupied the office of Illinois Central Management Services Director Malcolm Weems.
Instead of meekly dropping off their 2,000
petitions and leaving, as CMS requested, the group sat down and broke out into song, (to the tune of 'Frere Jacque/Are You Sleeping'):
"Where is Malcolm, Where is Malcolm?
Come on Out, Come on Out!
He must stop his stalling, Illinois is calling
Come on Out, Come on Out"
As the song echoed through the Thompson Center, CMS staff relented and set up a video conference between the Alliance and Director Weems, at which representatives pressed the case against closing any Human Service offices and the need to ensure that all service offices are free from serious health hazards.
"Closing service offices for the poor and disabled, while giving tax breaks to the rich is disgusting," said NA4J member and
occupier Virginia Hester.
"I am angry at Governor Quinn and Malcolm Weems, about this. Trying to force people to go into a bad building with asbestos makes this even worse."
It was recently confirmed that the IL DHS office at 2753 W. North Ave, owned by Republican official Asif Yusuf, has asbestos and 29 pages of other building code violations. Weems and Quinn propose to expand the taxpayer-financed lease to landlord Asif Yusuf, despite his failure to remedy building code violations.
Alliance members plan to return to the Thompson Center on May 11, to continue pressing their case.
Saturday,
January 12
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