From the blog for Good Jobs First, “I’m looking for citizen journalists to help investigate and expose Tax Increment Finance (TIF) district abuse in Chicago and Cook County–and then across Illinois. You probably know that TIFs are an often abused mechanism for funneling property taxes to special projects–ostensibly to fight “blight” and put development in under-served areas. In Chicago companies such as Home Depot, United Airlines, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Coca-Cola, UPS, Jewel-Osco, Target and Willis Insurance (who bough the Sears Tower) have all received tens of millions of dollars of property tax gifts via Chicago’s poorly monitored TIF program. So much for blight and the under-served getting development help!” Read the full post
Category: Get Involved
What Does “Citizenship” Mean To You?
Check out this wonderful video from the Our American Voice educational program.
Join Us For CivicHack Work Session
Join us on Thursday, October 11 at the Multikulti Space from 6:30-830pm for our next civic hack work session.
RSVP using Gathers.us.
We are working on three projects:
(1) Apps for Activists – Tools to solve persistent problems of organizing and community improvement efforts. First up on the lab workbench – “Sign Me Up/I’m Here!” tool to let attendees at rallies and public meetings connect with the organizers of the event. NEEDS: coders, web designers, knowledge of SMS messaging.
(2) Activist Speed Networking Night – Social change agents need some help hooking up with resources and allies – so let’s cook up a great evening of meeting, networking and music where people involved in community organizing and issue work can meet people and solve problems. NEEDS: people with special event production experience, graphic designers, commercial printing.
(3) The Tax Increment Finance (TIF) Report – You probably know that TIF’s sucked up $510 MILLION in Chicago property taxes in 2010. But you probably don’t know WHERE that money went and who got helped and who got hurt. Let’s find out. Calling all data hounds, civic coders, map makers, forensic accountants, fiscal policy wonks, good government geeks and neighborhood advocates – let’s pick one ward for a deep dive and really tell the whole TIF story for that community. More about TIFs here. NEEDS: graphic designers, researchers.
WHERE: Multikulti Space, 1000 N. Milwaukee, 4th Floor.
WHEN: Thursday, October 11, 6:30pm – 8:30pm
MORE INFO: tom@civiclab.us, 312-804-3230
Chicago Votes Launches With Rally
Chicago Votes is a new nonprofit dedicated to energizing young people into public life, doing voter registration work, triggering serious debate about public policy AND having a kick ass good time! Co-founded by activists T.J. Crawford and Rebecca Reynolds and sporting an impressive board of scholars and civic engagement champs, the organization is modeled after The Bus Project from Portland.
Here’s how Chicago Votes describes its work. “Chicago Votes does volunteer-driven democracy for our generation. We’re not left or right, but forward. We think democracy’s great, and believe it works best when tons of people participate…We believe our generation can build a greater city (which sounds like a little much, but seriously — who else is going to do it?) We believe politics needs to be more accessible, more equitable, and more innovative. So we’re pulling together young Chicagoans across the city to turn things around. And we’re having a ton of fun doing it. Just look at Give a Sh*t Happy Hour and Trick or Vote! For more “about us,” read Our Mission.”
Judging by the turn out, the faces in the crowd, the aldermen who spoke, the music and the vibes, I’d say they are off to a great start! Send them some love at http://chicagovotes.com/donate.
CivicLab Needed To Change The Score
Chicago needs a place and space like the CivicLab to help citizens do democracy. According the State Investigation Project from The Center for Public Integrity, Illinois gets a miserable grade for public integrity. According to Statehouse reporter Amanda Vinicky, dispite some recent legislative efforts, there has been no real change here.
“But in some ways, they are like nips and tucks — cosmetic facelifts that conceal a host of ethical loopholes. Despite wide knowledge of its crooked history, Illinois remains a state where lobbyists do not have to disclose their fees, where legislators cannot be sanctioned for conflicts of interest, and where the judges who make it on the bench are those with the best political connections.
In a study released on Feb. 15 by the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Illinois Institute for Government and Public Affairs —which ranked the per capita number of government appointees, employees, and others convicted of public corruption— Illinois came in a dismal second among states, behind Louisiana (the District of Columbia was the worst). According to the report, since 1976, the state tally of convictions is 1,828 – or around 51 per year; “at the heart of most convictions,” the study said, “is a payoff for something that is a sweetheart contract or a law or permit necessary to do business.”
And just Friday, the Illinois Legislature expelled Rep. Derrick Smith from the House – the first time that’s happened in over 100 years. Federal prosecutors accused Smith of writing a letter of recommendation on behalf of a day care center for a $50,000 grant in exchange for the fictitious operator kicking back $7,000.
Join Global Conversation on Physical Space as Catalyst for Civic Engagement
Join an online dialogue on Physical spaces as catalysts for greater digital citizen participation
August 8 to 14, 2012
Join Rising Voices, Social Media Exchange (SMEX) and the New Tactics online community for an online dialogue on Physical spaces as catalysts for greater digital citizen participation from August 8 to 14, 2012. CivicLab co-founder Tom Tresser is one of the discussion leaders.
Across the globe, new physical spaces are emerging that are acting as catalysts for greater citizen participation using digital technologies. Telecenters are going beyond providing computer access to communities, to providing workshops to train citizens on how to use digital technology effectively to promote change. Hacklabs offer a physical space where activists and technologists can come together to find innovative solutions to local problems. These are just a few examples of the innovative use of physical space to encourage and empower greater digital citizen participation!
Although the internet has provided new ways for people to work together virtually, people are finding complementary energy from working face-to-face. Mobilizers and mentors for users of these spaces have a commitment to see their local communities become more active through the use of digital tools.
This dialogue is an opportunity to exchange innovative examples of how these physical spaces are being used as catalysts for greater citizen participation. Join us on August 8!
How can you participate?
This online dialogue is open to anyone interested in sharing their experiences and ideas on this topic! All you need to do is join the New Tactics online community by going to https://www.newtactics.org/user/register and add your comments to the dialogue.
For help, visit these FAQs:
How to register for an account on the New Tactics website: goo.gl/QyI6C
How to participate in an online dialogue: goo.gl/eSNo9
Link to dialogue: goo.gl/1R9Mw
Attend Design Hack For The CivicLab
CALLING ALL ACTIVISTS, HACKTIVISTS AND PRACTITIONERS OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT…
Attend a design hack session on Saturday, June 16, 2012 from 10am – 2pm (pizza lunch will be provided)
to help design the CivicLab. What should it do? What should it look like like? What do YOU need to be more effective in civic engagement and activism? Remember, it wants to be a store front space AND an online place for making useful tools and programs to spur civic engagement and social change. Download a flier. RSVP to tom@tresser.com for address.
Agenda
10am – 10:15am – Schmoozing, get snacks
10:15 – Welcome to space – Nell Taylor, Executive Director, Read/Write Library (http://readwritelibrary.org)
10:20 – Why we are here – Tom Tresser, Chief Tool Builder, CivicLab (www.civiclab.us)
10:25 – Introductions and instructions – Katherine Darnstadt, Founder, Latent Design (www.latentdesign.com)
Break into small groups:
(1) The life-cycle of an activist event/cause – What apps or tools could help along the way? (Moderated by Rebecca Reynolds, organizer & activist)
(2) What should be in a civic lab? Dream up programming that would then inform a foot print and space plan. (Moderated by Katherine)
(3) Civic Education Primer – What skills should we be teaching, offering, learning to accelerate civic engagement? (Moderated by Nell) — (I will have a wiki already up that people can take notes directly into)
12pm – Lunch (pizza, soft drinks) – Continue schmoozing, networking
12:30 All groups re-assemble to go over key points to present
12:45 All re-group to hear reports
1:00ish – What next? Who wants to play? Creation of committees to program and plan an editorial calendar, work products and fundraising projects – Official launch November 1?
Contact Us If You Want To Attend…
Going To Community Media Workshop Conference