Reverse Mentorship Program Pilot to Take Place This Summer

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BY TIA CAROL JONES

The program is a paid internship program for young people ages 16 to 24 years old. Mentors and mentees will build meaningful relationships, develop leadership skills and receive leadership training. The reverse mentorship aspect is meant to develop mutual growth and development, where mentors can also learn from the younger program participants.

The guidance of Chicago Cares was instrumental in the program’s development. Its mission is to mobilize volunteers to build a stronger, more unified Chicago. PepsiCo has been a longstanding partner with Chicago Cares in doing the work engaging in community-driven service. Chicago Cares helped facilitate the development of PepsiCo’s Pathways to Readiness and Empowerment Program (PREP) in 2021.

“We know Chicago Cares has trusted relationships across the city, so it was really important to tap into their knowledge and expertise as we created this program. We wanted to be really thoughtful about the work we created and Chicago Cares was really supportive in leading us through that journey,” said Brittany Wilson, Community Manager at PepsiCo.

“All young people no matter their race, ethnicity or background, deserve equal access to learning, training, work experience and professional networks,” 20th Alderwoman Jeanette Taylor said in a release. “Lack of access to opportunities that build career skills could result in young people being left behind and may even lead to high rates of youth unemployment or violence as we have seen too many times. It is all connected, and we need to invest in them — Chicago’s young people, the FUTURE of our great city — on the front end.”

Gray Matter Experience, North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council, Big Brothers Big Sisters, After School Matters, Teamwork Englewood and Southwest Organizing Project also were involved in designing this program. “True service is community driven. We want to follow the community’s plans and strategies. We want to center the voices of those most directly impacted by the problems, acknowledging that they’re also closest to the solutions,” said Ellen Ray, CEO of Chicago Cares.

CHICAGO – Mijente announced the introduction of a new amendment to Cook County’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer ordinance that would limit the disclosure of personal information to immigration agents. The amendment, introduced by Commissioner Alma E. Anaya (7th District), would bring accountability to the unchecked data broker industry and protect Cook County residents’ personal information from being shared with ICE.

Private-sector data brokers, such as LexisNexis, provide access to data points on over 276 million U.S. residents that include highly sensitive personal information from financial records, property records, motor vehicle records, criminal records, cell phone data, addresses, and more. Under its $22.1 million contract, ICE has used the LexisNexis database to conduct millions of searches nationwide and target people for deportation. In 2021 alone, ICE’s Chicago Field Office made over 13,000 searches during a seven month period. The new amendment builds on last year’s first-of-its-kind hearing by Cook County commissioners, which investigated LexisNexis’ irresponsible sale of sensitive personal data and marks a new chapter in the ongoing investigation into ICE’s violation of regional sanctuary protections.

Chicago’s sanctuary record reaches as far back as 1982, and both city and Cook County officials have passed ordinances asserting their ability to reject federal authorities’ detention requests and to prevent police from holding people based only on their suspected immigration status. ICE uses its contracts with data brokers to obtain critical personal data – including highly sensitive information, like home addresses, location data, and physical characteristics – to circumvent Chicago’s Sanctuary City status, which guarantees that the City will not detain residents for ICE or otherwise assist in immigration enforcement.

The advocates anticipate a formal vote by the Cook County Board of Commissioners to vote on the amendment next month.

One aspect of the program’s development is that young people from the community were given the opportunity to provide input as to what they wanted included in the program. Wilson believes it is important to have the involvement of the young people who will be impacted. Chicago Cares introduced PepsiCo to young people from Englewood, North Lawndale and Chicago Lawn. Those young people are aware of what is going on in their communities and were able to speak to what they really wanted to see in a program. The goal is to create programs that are relevant to those young people’s needs.

Ray added that not only was it important to have the community involved, but also have the young people’s input, because it informs where the resources are placed, how time is invested and where the energy is put. The goal is to meet people’s true needs, not act on what they think people need. Ray said the young people involved brought a lot of valuable wisdom and experience to the process.

One of the things Chicago Cares and PepsiCo heard from the young people is that the program needed to be reciprocal and mutual. The young people have something to offer and want to be honored for the leadership, voice and expertise they bring. They also want consistent opportunities, as well as exposure to new careers and to be able to gain skills and credentials that will help them along their career path. For more information about PepsiCo, visit www.pepsico.com.

Harper Passes Bill to Address SNAP Benefit Theft

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – A bill by state Rep. Sonya Harper, D-Chicago, aimed at addressing the theft of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, is headed to the governor’s desk after unanimously passing both houses of the General Assembly.

“That protecting the most vulnerable people and families in our state is critically important should go without saying,” Harper said. “Sadly, theft of SNAP benefits that can deprive needy families, including children, of their access to proper nutrition have been a persistent and increasing problem. It’s past time that something was done.”

SNAP benefits are also sometimes referred to as “food stamps”. In recent years, food stamps have been issued to recipients using a debit-card system where benefits are loaded onto the recipient’s card. Thieves have targeted food stamp recipients by using devices (called “skimmers”) that are covertly inserted into payment machines at food retailers to steal card information, or devices that can need only be held near a victim’s wallet in order to remotely copy the information necessary to make a “clone” of the victim’s benefit card which the thief can then use. This type of benefits theft has been on the rise, and authorities have struggled to address it.

Victims of SNAP theft generally do not have their benefits replaced, meaning that recipients whose benefits are stolen often end up struggling to buy food until their next installment.

Harper’s House Bill 2214 would require the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) to track and collect data as to the scope and frequency of SNAP benefits fraud, especially when it occurs by means of skimming or cloning. Beginning in 2024, IDHS would be required to report its findings to the General Assembly quarterly.

Harper’s original bill included a requirement that IDHS replace victims’ stolen benefits, but this measure was removed by a Senate amendment.

“This legislation represents a solid first step in addressing this pressing issue. Going forward, it will be necessary to do more to make victims of SNAP benefits theft whole again,” Harper said. “Nevertheless, IDHS as well as my fellow lawmakers and I can now look forward to having much more robust information about this problem and how and where it is occurring, which is sure to help us craft smart policies to address it.”

Harper’s office is reachable at 773-925-6580 or repsonyaharper@gmail.com.