Roseland Community to Hold Funeral Procession with Message for Governor--Black Lives Matter

After Governor Ignores Invitation and Plea for Help from Roseland Community,
Residents Will Come to Him—with a Funeral Procession Showing How the Budget Freeze
and Shortfalls Threaten a Death by 1,000 Cuts to the Community at Large
Residents of the 98% African-American, Low-Income Community To Insist that Black Lives Matter
—at Roseland and Across the State

CHICAGO—After speaking out and rallying for full and immediate state funding for Roseland Community Hospital with public protests outside the hospital, community members will bring their demands directly to Governor Bruce Rauner with a press conference and funeral procession at the Thompson Center Wednesday morning.

After their invitation to the Governor to meet with community members in Roseland to witness and discuss the devastating impact of his budget freeze and cuts upon residents went unanswered, residents, pastors and other community leaders plan to highlight the damage inflicted by the state shutdown and budget cuts with a press conference and funeral procession at Thompson Center Plaza, featuring 30+ tombstones spelling out the programs and residents victimized by the cuts.

Residents will once again bring the Governor the message that Black Lives Matter, this time detailing not only the deaths that would be caused if Roseland Community Hospital were forced to close due to the budget crisis, but also the overall impact of the budget freeze and budget cuts on the 98% African-American low-income community. Roseland residents face a poverty rate that is 1.8 times the state average, and an extreme poverty rate that is more than double that of the state.

When:
Wednesday, July 29
11 AM

Where:
Thompson Center Plaza
100 West Randolph St

Who:
Roseland Residents and Advocates

Speakers to include:
Bishop Charles Mickens
Onzell Brown, Roseland Community Hospital Worker
Sharon Norwood, Child Care Provider
Katie Jordan, Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans
Laura Bailey, Phalanx Family Services

What:
A press conference, funeral procession and tombstone delivery to Governor Rauner, driving home the message that Black Lives Matter—and that the budget freeze and shortfalls are threatening to kill the Roseland Community by 1,000 cuts.

Speakers will detail the devastating impact of cuts .from the risk of losing Roseland Community Hospital to the loss of affordable child care, home care services, job training and placement programs, nursing home funding and other crucial services. Protestors will then drive the message home with a funeral procession on the plaza, featuring 30+ tombstones detailing victims of the cuts.

Following the funeral procession, a delegation of residents will enter the Thompson Center to deliver an oversized tombstone-shaped card to the Governor detailing how his budget freeze and cuts are endangering residents—and the community at large.