Homeless Youth, Advocates Rally Outside Thompson Center Against Social Service Cuts
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Homeless young people and other advocates rallied outside the Thompson Center today, crying out against cuts in social services during the budget impasse, reports WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore.
The crowd chanted for more revenue and Flora Koppel with Unity Parenting and Counseling argued that the state could save money by providing the average of $2,000 a year to care for a homeless teen.
"When an under-aged homeless youth or the children of a homeless parent end up using the child welfare system…the annual cost is $48,328 a year," Koppel said. "Weigh that against less than $2,000 that the state is paying."
State Representative Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) said he hated coming to yet another rally like this.
"It also hurts me to hear us having to justify these services on financial grounds, to say that, 'Oh well it's cheaper to provide services for homeless people than to let them die in the streets,'" Guzzardi said.
He says people need to get angry.