Chicago advocates set up hotlines to help voters, get people fired up to vote

Legal volunteers and community advocates were set to gather Monday morning to share resources for Illinois voters.

Representatives of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights say they want to help voters. The group has two hotlines set up to answer questions or concerns regarding the voting process — the nonpartisan Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE, and the ICIRR Family Support Network Hotline at 866-435-7693.

Trained volunteers from the ICIRR will answer questions until the end of the day on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3. They will also serve as nonpartisan poll watchers in Chicago and several nearby counties.

The ICIRR also partnered with other organizations and community leaders on Sunday to support a Voter Day of Action in Chicago's Chinatown. Organizers helped residents there get to an early voting site, while also addressing barriers to civic participation in the Chinese American community.

Chicago faith leaders are also trying to get people fired up to vote, and they held an event over the weekend on the West Side with that goal in mind. The Leaders Network of Chicago held a get-out-the-vote rally at New Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church, at 4301 W. Washington Blvd. in the West Garfield Park neighborhood, on Sunday afternoon.

The goal was to inspire the community to make their voices heard at the ballot box.

The rally also honored the legacy of civil rights icon Rev. Jesse Jackson, who died earlier this year. Jackson's son and current Rainbow PUSH Coalition chief executive officer Yusef Jackson was among the speakers.

Leaders hope people reach out to urge friends and family in other states to get to the polls.

<h2>School board candidate forums set for this week</h2>

Community organizations are also hosting school board candidate forums, with one coming up Monday on the South Side.

The aim of the forum is to help Black voters hear directly from the candidates for the Chicago Board of Education, and share what investing in the Chicago Public Schools system looks like to them.

The forum on Monday will be in the Woodlawn neighborhood at the Experimental Station, 6100 S. Blackstone Ave. On Tuesday evening, a forum is set for the Douglass Park ballroom at 1401 S. Sacramento Dr. in Lawndale.