Illinois Sierra Club endorsements

The Sierra Club released its list of candidates endorsed for the February 5th Illinois primary election.

Most of the endorsed candidates are in Chicago and its suburbs where there are more contested primaries. Downstate primary endorsements include Mike Boland in Illinois State House district 78 and Allen Mayer in the district 92 open primary. Expect more downstate endorsements later in the year for the general election.

The Club also backed long-time environmental supporter Paul Froehlich in House district 56. He's an incumbent who switched parties to become a Democrat last year.

The Sierra Club isn't the only environmental group in Illinois that does endorsements but it does have the most thorough process. After filling out a candidate questionnaire, most candidates are interviewed by a panel that includes local Sierra Club members from the district. Endorsements are voted on by two governing bodies of the organization, including the local Group in areas where one is active.

That means endorsements are backed up by action on the ground by local Sierra Club members. Its more than a paper endorsement.

Happy Jane Addams Day!

December 10 is recognized as Jane Addams Day in Illinois. Few people made the kind of lasting impact on America that Addams did and she's inexcusably under-recognized for her influence.

She's most known as a pioneer of social work and volunteerism for founding Hull House in Chicago. She was also a socialist and pacifist who became the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Hull House Museum is hosted by UIC. Some of their faculty recorded short audio essays about Addams and her work. The one by William Ayers is pretty interesting.

Addams believed that efforts like Hull House weren't enough without systemic societal reforms. That lead her to become a political activist on a variety of issues including immigrant rights, women's rights, labor, unions, and more.

It's time that Jane Addams be selected to represent Illinois in the US Capitol Statuary Hall Collection instead of James Shields or Frances Willard. "Instead of who?" you may ask. Exactly.