Public Education & Organizing
Our members make us powerful.
We build awareness and activate change by sharing information and real-life stories with policymakers, nonprofit service providers, and the media. We keep our members and allies informed about the latest developments in housing policy, organize issue-specific working groups, meet with legislators, take the pulse of communities during our outreach caravan, and host an annual Housing Matters Conference where advocates and practitioners share their knowledge and expertise.
Our Priority Issues
Housing Action Illinois works to educate and organize around a broad range of issues aligned with our core mission of creating an Illinois where everyone has a good, affordable place to call home. Our primary issues include:
Louder Together: Multi-Sector Partnerships
To truly change our affordable housing ecosystem for the better, we need to bring together not just housing advocates but also people, organizations, and interest groups from beyond the housing field. This is why Housing Action Illinois has joined the national Opportunity Starts at Home campaign, a project of our allies at the National Low Income Housing Coalition, and why we are working with advocates in pediatric health care, refugee resettlement, and the disability rights sector to raise up affordable housing as an issue that matters to all of us.
Annual Conference
During our annual conference, we build the expertise, experience, and capacity to make our communities better.
Caravan
We visit with members, host regional gatherings, and take the pulse of housing issues in rural, suburban, and urban Illinois.
Publications
Housing Action Illinois publishes research and analysis on issues related to affordable housing, as well as educational materials.
Latest News
Don’t Take Power Over Evictions Away from the Court and County Sheriff: Urge Your State Representative to Vote Against HB 5395
The Illinois House of Representatives may be voting very soon on House Bill 5395, sponsored by Representative Monique Davis. The legislation would take responsibility away from the Cook County Sheriff for conducting residential evictions in ways that would be harmful...
Statement by Housing Action Illinois Commending Representative Mike Quigley’s Vote Against Legislation Underfunding Critical Housing Assistance to Low-Income Families
Representative Mike Quigley, from Illinois' 5th Congressional District, who is on the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, today voted against the 2015 Transportation-HUD funding bill, although the bill was ultimately approved. This bill will set funding for important...
Tell Your State Legislators to Make Income Tax Increase Permanent to Stop Deep Budget Cuts
By the end of May, the Illinois General Assembly will decide whether to pass a budget that has enough revenue to maintain current spending levels for education, heath care, human services and public safety or pass a budget that makes cuts in all these program areas....