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<h2>Check your voter registration!</h2>Make sure you're registered to vote in the primary that will be held on March 17, 2026! The general election will be held on November 3, 2026, but we're not focusing on that just yet. With everything that is going on in America right now, and with Trump in power trying to strip citizens of their right to vote, we need to make sure that we are ready come election day!Please <a href="https://ova.elections.il.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">click here</a> to register to vote if you haven't already! The last day to register to vote for the primary is March 1, 2026.Please <a href="https://ova.elections.il.gov/registrationlookup.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">click here</a> to check on your voter registration! <a href="https://elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/VotingByMailAgreement.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Click here</a> to register to vote by mail!<a href="https://www.voteriders.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/VoteRiders_InfoIL_Eng_All_2025.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Click here</a> for a downloadable info card with more information!

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<h2>Why am I running?</h2><h3>In an already crowded primary, you might wonder why I'm running. Here's your answer!</h3>As I've said before and will probably say a million times again before the end of this campaign: I’m not a career politician, I’m a case manager, and I think my voice is valuable because not only do I speak for myself, but I speak for my clients, both past and present, who are struggling to live in this system that we have created. I've had cancer. I survived. I've had a drug overdose. I had to learn how to do everything again: walk, talk, brush my teeth, tie my shoes, hold a fork, take a shower. But I survived. And instead of turning that pain inward and pushing it down inside of me, I've used it as a catalyst to help others. I’ve spent my days helping women who have lost everything navigate broken systems that were never designed to serve them. I’ve sat with people in shelters, advocated for seniors who were being stripped of their benefits, and fought for those who had no one else in their corner. That work has shaped me. It’s taught me what real leadership looks like, and it’s not polished speeches or backroom deals. It’s showing up, listening deeply, and refusing to walk away when things get hard.I’ve lived without money. I’ve struggled with rent. I’ve stood in food pantries and juggled bills like millions of others. So let me be clear: I’m not running for Congress to enrich myself. I’m running because I know what it’s like to fall through the cracks, and I want to help seal those cracks shut.No corporation or special interest will ever buy my vote, because nothing they can offer compares to the dignity of standing with the people who’ve been ignored for too long. I don’t answer to donors. I answer to you. And I will never back down from fighting for the rights of my constituents, my fellow Americans, and the rights of people all over the world who are suffering.I don’t play the game of politics because I’ve lived through the consequences of it being treated like a game. More importantly, my clients have lived through those consequences. When politicians posture, delay, or sell out to the highest bidder, real people suffer. I’ve seen it firsthand. I’ve held their hands while they cried. I’ve scrambled to find emergency housing, food, or diapers because some lawmaker wanted to make a point instead of a difference. It’s heartbreaking, and it’s infuriating. People deserve better.I’m running because I believe everyone deserves housing, healthcare, a living wage, and the chance to live with dignity, regardless of what’s in their bank account or where they come from. I’m running because I’ve lived the failures of this system, and I refuse to accept that this is the best we can do.<h3>The state of the democratic party today</h3>Too many establishment Democrats are failing this country, not because they’re openly cruel like their Republican counterparts, but because they’re comfortable and therefore, complicit. At a time when we need bold action, they offer bipartisan gestures. When people are losing housing, reproductive freedom, and access to basic healthcare, they send out fundraising emails and wait for polls to shift. I’ve watched them stand by as vulnerable people, my clients, suffer the consequences of their inaction. Their silence and half-measures are not neutral. They’re harmful. We need fighters, not fence-sitters. We need leaders who understand that justice delayed is justice denied and that the cost of political cowardice is paid in human lives.I also believe that a lot of Democrats are scared; scared of being targeted by the far-right, scared of saying the wrong thing, scared of standing too firmly on the side of justice, scared of advocating for their constituents and the American people, and to an extent, people around the world. But I’m not scared. And I don’t say that to sound tough. I say it because I’ve already lived through hell. I've faced cancer and the very real possibility of death as a child. I’ve battled addiction. I’ve been broke, overlooked, and counted out. I’ve held the hands of women who had nowhere to go. I've sat with seniors in nursing homes who were sent there to die. I've held their hand as they've struggled to breathe (and no, this is not hyperbole - I truly have). I’ve lived the consequences of bad policy and political cowardice.So no, I’m not afraid of right-wing extremists. I’m not afraid of losing donors. I’m not afraid of being called radical for believing everyone deserves dignity. What I am afraid of is what happens if we continue to elect people who are too afraid to act.Because fear won’t save us, courage will.

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This campaign isn’t powered by corporations or big donors. It’s powered by people like you. People who are tired of being ignored. People who know that we deserve better. People who believe that care, dignity, and truth should guide our politics, not greed and cruelty.If that resonates with you, I want you on this team.Whether you’ve got 5 hours or 5 days, 5 weeks or 5 months, there’s a place for you in this movement. Help us knock doors, make calls, host house parties, organize your neighbors, or just spread the word online. If you have any areas of expertise you'd like to share with the campaign, please reach out. Every conversation matters. Every action moves us forward.<h4><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdukMbiEl9s-Slexf5QljYJDOM7ASY0p-HgEqLUUR9Mi5_75Q/viewform?usp=header" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Click here for volunteer opportunities! </a></h4>This isn’t just about winning a seat. It’s about building something bigger than all of us—a politics that actually reflects who we are.Already on the team? Join our volunteer Slack!This is where we plan events, share updates, and stay connected. Whether you’re making calls, knocking on doors, or organizing online, this is your space too.<a href="https://join.slack.com/t/laurenmillion-qoa4677/shared_invite/zt-38kmc4684-RcqbnfDSV1qwtxxfRNUFDw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Join our Slack workspace</a>

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A livable future for all

Invest in people, not war

Care is infrastructure

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<h3>I've seen what's broken. And I know what's possible.</h3>The policies I fight for come from the life I’ve lived. I’ve faced illness, addiction, and loss—and I’ve spent my career walking alongside people navigating those same struggles. I’ve seen firsthand how our systems fail the most vulnerable and how difficult it is to build a life when the odds are stacked against you.That’s why I’m running. Because politics shouldn’t be about protecting the powerful—it should be about caring for the people who’ve been overlooked for far too long. My priorities are rooted in compassion, equity, and the belief that everyone deserves more than just survival—they deserve dignity, support, and a real chance to thrive.

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<h2>A Vision for IL-09: Building the Future from the Ground Up</h2>Most politicians run on promises made in Washington. I’m running on what we can build together right here at home.The 9th Congressional District of Illinois is one of the most diverse, vibrant, and resilient communities in the country. But like much of America, it is also a district marked by inequality, disinvestment, and systems that haven’t evolved to meet people’s real needs. That doesn’t mean we wait for change. It means we lead it.As your representative, I won’t just vote the right way. I’ll fight to bring resources home to launch real, community-driven pilot programs under many of my core issue areas. These initiatives will serve as proof-of-concept for the nation, showing that when we treat people with care, dignity, and respect, we get better results.Here are just some ideas of what I would like to see in IL-09:1. Community-Owned CooperativesWe shouldn’t have to rely on giant corporations or absentee landlords to meet our basic needs. That’s why I’ll champion a pilot program to seed and support community-owned cooperatives across IL-09 - whether it’s housing, grocery stores, childcare, or broadband. These co-ops will be locally governed, democratically run, and designed to keep wealth circulating within our neighborhoods, not siphoned out of them.2. Intergenerational Housing &amp; Support HubsLet’s stop separating generations and start building connections across them. I’m proposing an intergenerational living model that brings together older adults, young families, and youth under one roof, with shared green space, common kitchens, and access to on-site support services. These hubs will reduce isolation, share resources, and foster the kind of everyday community care that institutions can’t replicate.3. Restorative Justice CentersWe need to move away from punishment-based systems and toward healing-centered solutions. I want to pilot Restorative Justice Centers across IL-09; spaces where conflicts, harm, and even criminal charges can be addressed through dialogue, accountability, and repair. These centers will focus on youth diversion, school partnerships, and community-based alternatives to incarceration.4. Empathy &amp; Civic Literacy EducationDemocracy isn’t just about voting; it’s about understanding, compassion, and shared responsibility. I want to bring empathy and civic literacy programs into our schools and community spaces. These workshops will help people (especially young people) learn how government works, how to organize, and how to talk across differences. Because civic power starts with emotional intelligence.5. Media Literacy &amp; Disinformation Defense WorkshopsIn the age of misinformation, critical thinking is a survival skill. I’ll pilot district-wide media literacy workshops, especially in schools and libraries, to teach people how to evaluate sources, identify propaganda, and resist manipulation. This isn’t partisan, it’s about protecting truth, rebuilding trust, and giving people the tools to think for themselves.6. Veteran Wellness &amp; Support NetworkMany of our veterans come home to a system that forgets them. I want to pilot a holistic veteran support network focused on housing stability, trauma recovery, and community reintegration. This would include peer mentorship, family support, and access to alternative care models, not just pills and paperwork. Our veterans deserve better, and we can build it right here.7. Community Doulas &amp; Birth JusticeToo many people, especially Black and Indigenous parents, are dying or suffering during childbirth in one of the richest countries in the world. I want to expand access to community doulas, midwives, and culturally competent birth workers across IL-09. We’ll pilot a Birth Justice Program that makes prenatal and postpartum care accessible, trauma-informed, and rooted in trust.8. Universal School Meals &amp; After-School NutritionNo child should be hungry, ever. I’ll push for a pilot program that guarantees universal school meals across the district, regardless of income, along with an after-school food program that ensures students have nutritious options before they head home. Because learning is impossible on an empty stomach, and every child deserves dignity at the lunch table.9. Job Guarantee for Returning CitizensWhen people come home from prison, they deserve a real second chance. I want to pilot a Federal Job Guarantee for Returning Citizens, offering living-wage work in public service, care work, climate jobs, and infrastructure. This program would also include wraparound services like housing support, mentorship, and trauma-informed care. Because successful reentry is public safety.10. Death Doulas &amp; End-of-Life Care EquityA first-of-its-kind district-based pilot that trains, certifies, and funds community death doulas to provide emotional, spiritual, and logistical support to people at the end of life. This program would collaborate with hospice organizations, hospitals, and families to restore dignity and presence to the dying process, especially for those without traditional support systems.11. Language Exchange &amp; Cultural Fluency ProgramsIL-09 is one of the most diverse districts in the country, and that should be our greatest strength. I want to launch language exchange programs in libraries, schools, and community centers where neighbors can teach and learn from one another. These programs will foster connection, reduce isolation, and celebrate the multicultural fabric of our district. Understanding each other is the first step toward solidarity.These are just the beginning.IL-09 deserves more than policy promises—it deserves action. It deserves to be a national model of what progressive, compassionate governance looks like in practice. <h3>So how do we pay for it?</h3>We’re not talking about pie-in-the-sky promises—we’re talking about strategic investments. Most of these proposals can be paid for by:<ul><li>Reallocating existing funding from ineffective or outdated programs toward what actually works.</li><li>Tapping into state and federal grant programs that already exist but are underutilized. Write new grant proposals for help with funding.</li><li>Partnering with local nonprofits, universities, and healthcare providers who have a vested interest in solving these problems and often already have infrastructure in place.</li><li>Leveraging Medicaid, Medicare, and Older Americans Act funds—especially for programs that reduce hospitalizations, institutionalization, or chronic care costs (if these options even exist at the time, thanks to Trump's cuts!)</li><li>Launching small-scale pilot programs powered by volunteers or community partners to prove the concept before scaling.</li><li>Exploring community-based fundraising for hyperlocal projects, paired with transparent budgeting so every dollar is accounted for.</li></ul>We don’t have to reinvent the wheel—we just have to stop letting it spin in place. These investments aren’t just moral. They’re smart, preventative, and cost-saving in the long run.Let’s make it real. Right here. Together.

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I’m not running to manage the status quo - I’m running to transform it. Our systems are failing because they were never designed to serve all of us. I’ve worked alongside people fighting just to survive. These issues aren’t abstract to me - they’re personal. I believe in a government that shows up for people with policies rooted in care, dignity, and truth. Here’s what I’ll fight for.

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Hi! I'm Lauren

<h2></h2><img src="https://run.imgix.net/5c1b779f-dc01-46e1-90b7-9b6ba8e35fc5/3cb40b58-0729-4cb6-bb94-e961b402caff/7935cd71-42db-4fdb-b42a-a3554538674e.webp?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=0%2C0%2C2978%2C4096&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="My beautiful girl, Buffy" align="left" alignwidth="40" tiltdirection="left" variant="framed">My beautiful girl, Buffy<h3>I’m not a career politician. I’m a case manager, a survivor, and someone who’s spent her life standing up for people who’ve been knocked down, left behind, or told they don’t matter, because I've been there too.</h3>I grew up the oldest daughter of three in a working-class family in Northwest Indiana. My dad is a second-generation union ironworker. My mom has worked as an administrative assistant for as long as I can remember. They taught me the value of hard work, honesty, and showing up for others; lessons I carry with me every single day.<h4>At 12, I was diagnosed with bone cancer.</h4>That experience changed my life. It showed me both the power of medical care and the cruelty of a system that too often puts cost over compassion. I’ve navigated drug addiction and recovery. I’ve lost people I love. And I’ve worked on the front lines ever since, first supporting older adults facing isolation, illness, and loss of bodily autonomy, and now helping women experiencing homelessness access shelter, healthcare, and support. I grew up just across the border in Northwest Indiana, but my ties to Chicago go back decades. I was treated for childhood cancer at the University of Chicago. The city became a second home to me during some of the hardest moments of my life, and it’s where I’ve now chosen to live, work, and fight for the future we all deserve.<img src="https://run.imgix.net/5c1b779f-dc01-46e1-90b7-9b6ba8e35fc5/ad79b941-f8a2-4ca4-a350-c710b7179fdf/ad79b941-f8a2-4ca4-a350-c710b7179fdf.jpeg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=0%2C0%2C2118%2C3040&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="2002 or 2003. I was 12 here. My sweet boy, Jack (I've always been a cat lover)" align="left" alignwidth="40" tiltdirection="left" variant="framed">2002 or 2003. I was 12 here. My sweet boy, Jack (I've always been a cat lover)These experiences have shaped everything I believe about what government should be. I’ve seen how people are treated when they’re no longer seen as “useful.” I’ve seen how families break under the weight of caregiving. I believe we have a moral obligation to take care of people at every stage of life, from early childhood to old age. No one should be discarded, and no one should be left behind. Every life has value. Within every person is an entire world.I hold a bachelor’s degree in addiction psychology and am currently pursuing a master’s degree in political psychology. My academic work has deepened my understanding of how people form beliefs, how disinformation spreads, and the impact of trauma and inequality on political behavior. But it’s my lived experience that drives me.I’m running for Congress because I believe care should be the foundation of our politics, not cruelty. Because our government should help people heal, not punish them for being vulnerable. Because survival shouldn’t be a privilege, and dignity shouldn’t be negotiable.<h4>Every day in my work, I see the impact of policies made by people who’ve never lived what everyday people live. That disconnect is destroying lives. It’s time we change who holds the pen.</h4>This campaign is about rewriting the rules. It’s about building a future rooted in justice, truth, and radical compassion for everyone. Not just the lucky few. Not just the ones who’ve always had a seat at the table.Outside of politics, I’m a total bookworm who loves baking, writing, going to concerts, and playing Dungeons &amp; Dragons with friends. I share my home, and most of my downtime, with a very spoiled cat named Buffy (yes, she is named after the television character, my favorite show growing up and still today). This campaign is serious, but I believe joy, imagination, and connection are political, too. They remind us what we’re fighting for.<img src="https://run.imgix.net/5c1b779f-dc01-46e1-90b7-9b6ba8e35fc5/3ec860c7-440e-4b8b-be72-ce43bde20ae5/3ec860c7-440e-4b8b-be72-ce43bde20ae5.jpeg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&amp;bri=0&amp;con=0&amp;sat=0&amp;high=0&amp;shad=0&amp;usm=0&amp;rect=0%2C0%2C4032%2C3024&amp;w=1500" alt="" caption="Me, my Mom, my sister Hannah's dog, Lucy, my sister Emily, and my sister Hannah" align="left" alignwidth="40" tiltdirection="left" variant="framed">Me, my Mom, my sister Hannah's dog, Lucy, my sister Emily, and my sister HannahAnd as a political psychologist, I study how fear, identity, trauma, and emotion shape people’s political beliefs and behavior. I’ve spent years researching what drives division, even before I started school, and what it takes to build trust, bridge gaps, and create lasting change. That background informs everything I do, from how I listen to constituents to how I craft policy. I believe that understanding the human mind is essential to building a more just and functional democracy, and ultimately, a better world.If you’ve ever felt unseen, unheard, or like politics isn’t for people like you, know this: I see you. I am you. And I’m fighting for you.

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“I'm not a career politician. I’ve lived the kind of life politicians like to talk about but rarely understand. I’ve faced cancer, addiction, and financial hardship—and I’ve spent my career helping others navigate systems that weren’t built for them either. I’m running because I believe care shouldn’t be a privilege. It should be the foundation of our policies."

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I come from a union family. My dad was a proud union ironworker for over 30 years, and I saw firsthand what union wages and protections meant—not just for our household, but for our entire community. Unions gave my family stability, dignity, and the power to say “no” to unsafe conditions and unfair pay.That’s what unions do. Unions literally built our nation. They don’t just fight for workers—they build the middle class. They defend democracy. They are one of the last powerful tools working people have to protect themselves from corporate greed and exploitation. But for decades now, unions have been under attack—from anti-worker legislation, corporate intimidation, and a political establishment that’s forgotten who it’s supposed to serve.We don’t need more lip service about “hardworking Americans.” We need bold action that puts power back in the hands of workers.Why Unions Lost Ground—and Why They’re Rising AgainFor decades, powerful interests waged a war on unions, spending billions on propaganda, passing anti-worker laws, and outsourcing good jobs. They painted unions as corrupt or obsolete, while quietly dismantling the protections working people had fought for. But the truth never changed: unions build power, raise wages, and protect dignity.Today, workers across the country are organizing again—because they know that real change doesn’t come from the top down. It comes from standing together and demanding better.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>The PRO Act, to protect the right to organize, ban union-busting tactics, and hold corporations accountable</li><li>Strong federal enforcement of labor rights, including penalties for companies that retaliate against organizing workers</li><li>Union jobs at the center of climate and infrastructure investments, including prevailing wage requirements and project labor agreements</li><li>The repeal of so-called “Right to Work” laws that weaken unions and lower wages</li><li>Expanded bargaining rights for public sector workers and gig workers</li><li>Retirement security, including protecting union pensions and strengthening Social Security<ul><li>Protecting pensions from cuts or mismanagement</li><li>Ensuring governments fully fund their pension obligations to teachers, public employees, firefighters, etc.</li><li>Expanding retirement security, especially for low- and middle-income workers</li><li>Creating sustainable, long-term funding solutions without sacrificing workers’ earned benefits</li></ul></li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Here in the 9th District, we are home to countless union workers—teachers, healthcare workers, tradespeople, transit workers, postal employees, and more. And we are also home to many who want to unionize but are being threatened, silenced, or surveilled by their employers.As your representative, I won’t just vote the right way on labor—I’ll stand shoulder-to-shoulder with workers in the street, on the picket line, and in the halls of power. I’ll fight to make IL-09 a place where working people aren’t just respected—they’re protected, organized, and heard.Because I’ve lived it. I know what union strength looks like. And I’ll never stop fighting for it.

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Labor Unions

Everyone deserves to live with safety, dignity, and pride—regardless of who they are or who they love. Yet across the country, LGBTQIA+ rights are under relentless assault. From bans on gender-affirming care to attacks on trans youth and attempts to erase queer voices from schools, libraries, and public life, the far-right is waging a coordinated campaign of fear and control. I, like so many people in this country, have friends who identify as part of this community. I'm fighting for them, and for every other person to be who they are, not who they're told they have to be. Queer love is love. The LGBTQIA+ community has always been at the forefront of the fight for justice in this country, from Stonewall to ACT UP to today’s movements for trans liberation. And still, so many people—especially Black and Brown trans women, nonbinary youth, and queer people living at the intersections of marginalization—are denied the safety, resources, and respect they deserve. In the face of this cruelty, I stand firmly with the LGBTQIA+ community—not just in words, but in action. Our district is home to one of the most vibrant and resilient queer communities in the country. We deserve leaders who won’t flinch in the fight for full equality, who understand that love is love, gender is expansive, and liberation is for everyone.If I’m elected, I will fight for:<ul><li>Federal protections for LGBTQIA+ people in employment, housing, and healthcare</li><li>National access to gender-affirming care and reproductive autonomy</li><li>Strong anti-bullying policies and inclusive education in every public school</li><li>Expanded mental health services tailored to LGBTQIA+ needs</li><li>Federal support for LGBTQIA+ youth experiencing homelessness</li><li>The fundamental right to exist, love, and thrive—without fear or apology</li></ul>Here in IL-09, I’ll work to strengthen partnerships with local LGBTQIA+ organizations, ensure inclusive training for all publicly funded services, and advocate for safe spaces and supportive programming in schools, shelters, clinics, and community centers. Equality isn’t optional—it’s the bare minimum.

LGBTQIA+ Rights

No human being is illegal. Everyone deserves safety, dignity, and the right to build a life free from violence and fear.Our immigration system is broken and not by accident. It has been intentionally designed to exclude, punish, and dehumanize people based on where they were born and how much money they have. Families are being torn apart. Asylum seekers are turned away. And immigrants who’ve lived here for decades are being surveilled, detained, deported, and stripped of their humanity.Let’s be clear: cruelty is the point.And that cruelty comes from the top. Trump has repeatedly used Latino voters as political pawns, courting them to win in 2016 and again in 2024, only to turn around and punish immigrant communities for simply existing. He’s expanded surveillance. Increased deportations. Doubled down on the dehumanizing language and policies that label people as criminals for crossing imaginary lines in search of survival.It’s a betrayal of the very people who helped him win. And it’s part of a long, shameful pattern in American politics: use immigrant labor, immigrant culture, and immigrant votes, then discard the people themselves.We would not be who we are as a country without immigrants. Immigrants built this country. They raised our children, harvested our food, cared for our elders, started our businesses, and revitalized our cities. To treat them as disposable is not only wrong—it’s un-American.“Immigrants make our communities stronger, our economy more innovative, and our future more hopeful. Their courage is the backbone of this district—and this country.”As a case manager, I’ve worked with immigrants who were trying to rebuild their lives after fleeing violence, only to find new barriers here. Language access, legal limbo, housing discrimination, and fear of ICE. We should be welcoming our neighbors, not punishing them for needing help.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>A clear, accessible pathway to citizenship for all undocumented immigrants.</li><li>Immediate protection for DACA recipients, TPS holders, and mixed-status families.</li><li>End immigrant detention and close private detention centers.</li><li>Abolish ICE’s enforcement division and reinvest in humane immigration infrastructure.</li><li>Restore and expand asylum protections at the border and globally.</li><li>Expand access to healthcare, housing, and legal aid for immigrants and refugees, regardless of status.</li><li>Protect sanctuary cities and uphold local policies that support immigrant communities.</li><li>Ensure language access and culturally competent care across government services.</li></ul>Migration is not a crime—it’s a response to crisis. People move to survive. People move to protect their families. People move in search of freedom. We should welcome them with compassion, not cages.<h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>The 9th District is one of the most diverse in the country, and we’re stronger because of it. Immigrants and refugees have built this district. They’re our neighbors, our coworkers, our health care providers, small business owners, teachers, and delivery drivers. Many have fled war, persecution, poverty, or climate disaster—only to find themselves entangled in a U.S. immigration system that is cruel, dehumanizing, and deliberately confusing.I’ve sat with clients in this district who are afraid to access basic services because they worry it will impact their immigration status. I’ve witnessed the emotional toll of separation, uncertainty, and fear. And I’ve seen how policies that treat immigrants like political pawns don’t just harm individuals—they destabilize entire communities.As your representative, I’ll fight to:<ul><li>Protect and expand asylum and refugee resettlement programs</li><li>Create a clear path to citizenship for undocumented individuals and DACA recipients</li><li>End ICE raids and detention quotas, and invest in community-based alternatives to detention</li><li>Ensure access to healthcare, education, and legal representation regardless of immigration status</li><li>Support immigrant-owned businesses and workforce development programs right here in IL-09</li></ul>In a district shaped by migration and resilience, we have a responsibility to lead with compassion, not cruelty. I will never stop fighting for a country—and a district—where every person is treated with dignity, no matter where they were born.

Immigration and Refugee Protection

A society can be judged by how it treats its elders—and right now, we are failing. Too many nursing homes in this country function as warehouses for the vulnerable, where understaffing, neglect, and even abuse go unchecked. Families are often left with no real choices and no one to turn to. Workers are underpaid and overwhelmed, and residents suffer the consequences.I’ve seen it firsthand. In my previous work supporting older adults, I visited many nursing homes throughout our community. What I witnessed was heartbreaking. People left alone for hours. Residents treated like burdens rather than human beings. Facilities that were more about cutting costs than providing care. Our elders deserve better. They deserve dignity. They deserve oversight, accountability, and real investment.We need a system that prioritizes quality of life, not profit margins—a system that respects the humanity of aging and values the people who provide elder care.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>Strict federal enforcement of staffing ratios, safety standards, and quality-of-care metrics in nursing homes</li><li>Real accountability and transparency for nursing home owners and operators, including public reporting of violations and ownership structures</li><li>Increased wages, training, and support for long-term care workers, many of whom are underpaid and overworked</li><li>Expanded access to in-home and community-based care to give families alternatives to institutionalization</li><li>Funding for independent ombudsman programs to ensure families and residents have advocates on their side</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>In the 9th District, many of our elders live in nursing facilities that are deeply under-resourced, and many families have no other options. I’ve helped clients navigate this system. I’ve seen the toll it takes. And I’ve seen how hard care workers are trying to make a difference without the tools or support they need.As your representative, I will fight for increased oversight of nursing homes across our district, and push for federal and state investment in aging-in-place programs, community care hubs, and stronger worker protections. I’ll work alongside families, elder care advocates, and healthcare professionals to ensure our district leads the way in how we care for older adults—with dignity, compassion, and respect.Because growing old should not mean growing invisible.

Nursing Home Oversight and Elder Care Reform

In a time of growing division and distrust, the battle for truth has never been more urgent.Disinformation is not just a nuisance; it is a weapon being used to confuse, divide, and manipulate the American public. Whether it’s conspiracy theories spreading like wildfire online, deepfake videos blurring the lines of reality, or coordinated propaganda campaigns, we are up against an onslaught of manufactured lies designed to erode our shared sense of reality.I have a background in political psychology, and I’ve studied how disinformation works: how it plays on fear, identity, and emotion to manipulate behavior and polarize communities. But I’ve also seen how powerful the antidotes can be: education, transparency, and critical thinking.We need to equip people, especially young people, with the tools to understand what they’re seeing, question what they’re being told, and think critically about the world around them. Because democracy cannot survive if truth becomes optional.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>National investments in K-12 and adult media literacy education, including federal support for local school curricula and public libraries</li><li>Funding for digital civics programs that teach students and adults how to evaluate online information, spot manipulation, and understand algorithms</li><li>Oversight of social media platforms to increase transparency, enforce accountability, and crack down on disinformation-for-profit models</li><li>Support for independent journalism and local news outlets that keep communities informed</li><li>Public education campaigns to combat health misinformation, election lies, and conspiracy movements</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>As your representative, I’ll fight for federal grants to bring media literacy programs into our schools, community colleges, senior centers, and public libraries. I’ll work with trusted local partners to host digital literacy workshops, fact-checking clinics, and civic education events. And I’ll stand up to the billionaires and bad actors profiting off lies—because truth is not partisan, and informed communities are strong communities.

Media Literacy and Disinformation Defense

The climate crisis is no longer a distant threat—it’s here. From deadly heat waves and wildfires to toxic air and flooded neighborhoods, we’re already living through the consequences of decades of inaction and fossil fuel greed. But the impacts of climate change don’t fall on all of us equally. Low-income communities, communities of color, and people with disabilities are hit first and worst.Climate justice means protecting our planet and our people at the same time. It means holding polluters accountable. It means investing in clean energy, clean water, and clean air—not just for the wealthy, but for everyone. And it means ensuring that the transition to a green economy creates good-paying union jobs, especially in communities that have been left behind.This isn’t just about saving the environment. It’s about building a future that’s livable, equitable, and rooted in care for each other and the generations to come.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>A Green New Deal framework that centers equity, jobs, and environmental justice</li><li>Federal investments in renewable energy and green infrastructure, including public transit, building retrofits, and solar/wind power</li><li>Just transition policies that support workers and communities as we move away from fossil fuels</li><li>Environmental justice protections for frontline communities exposed to pollution and climate risks</li><li>Bold emissions reduction targets that align with scientific consensus—and hold corporations accountable</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Here in the 9th District, climate change isn’t abstract. We’ve seen extreme weather disrupt our daily lives. Many of our communities live near polluted industrial corridors or aging infrastructure. We deserve clean air, safe drinking water, and green spaces for our children to play in. We deserve jobs that don’t destroy the planet.As your representative, I’ll push for federal funding to support green development across our district, including energy efficiency upgrades, tree planting, electric buses, and clean energy job training programs. I’ll work to make IL-09 a model for how we fight the climate crisis—not with fear, but with action, justice, and hope.Because the future is ours to build—and we don’t have time to wait.

Climate Justice and Green Jobs

Investing in Science that Serves People and the PlanetWe are living through a climate emergency, but also a crisis of imagination.We already possess many of the tools necessary to address climate change, including renewable energy, regenerative agriculture, sustainable housing, public transportation, and nature-based solutions. But these tools remain underdeveloped, underfunded, or locked behind corporate patents—not because we lack the technology, but because we lack the political will to fund research that puts people and the planet first.While wildfires rage, air becomes unbreathable, and communities are displaced by floods and droughts, we continue to subsidize fossil fuels and militarization instead of science that could protect lives and build a sustainable future.We are not broke. We are misallocating our resources.<h3>The Problem</h3>Despite the existential threat of climate change, the U.S. still spends:<ul><li>Over $20 billion annually subsidizing fossil fuels</li><li>More on weapons systems than on climate resilience, infrastructure, or environmental research combined</li></ul>We’re decades behind where we could be on clean energy, green infrastructure, and climate adaptation because our government treats research for the public good as optional, when it should be foundational.Instead of asking, “What’s the bare minimum we can do to survive?” we should be asking, “How do we build a world worth surviving in?”<h3>My Vision</h3>We need to treat research as climate action.Because that’s exactly what it is.Innovation in science and technology, when driven by public values, can reduce emissions, protect ecosystems, create millions of jobs, and save lives. But that means investing boldly in the kind of research that serves the common good, not just corporate profits.We can’t wait decades for fusion or carbon capture breakthroughs while climate disasters accelerate. But we also can’t give up on those long-term solutions. We must do both: act urgently now, and invest in the technologies that could transform our future.<h3>What I’m Fighting For</h3><h4>A National Research &amp; Innovation Fund</h4>A dedicated federal investment in research that advances:<ul><li>Clean, renewable, and decentralized energy systems</li><li>Climate-resilient infrastructure and public housing</li><li>Regenerative agriculture and soil restoration</li><li>Biodegradable materials and circular economy design</li><li>Ecosystem preservation and rewilding science</li><li>Public health protections from climate-related impacts</li></ul>This fund would prioritize universities, community labs, and public-private partnerships focused on sustainability, equity, and real-world impact.<h4>Redirecting Harmful Subsidies</h4>We should not be using public money to fund our own destruction. I support eliminating fossil fuel subsidies and redirecting those funds toward:<ul><li>Research on clean tech and decarbonization</li><li>Climate-resilient architecture and infrastructure</li><li>Low-carbon transportation systems</li><li>Public water system innovation</li></ul><h4>Public Research, Public Return</h4>When taxpayer dollars fund research, the public should benefit. That means:<ul><li>Public ownership of clean energy breakthroughs</li><li>Open-access scientific data and environmental impact tools</li><li>Pricing protections on climate-critical innovations like air filtration, insulation, and drought-resistant crops</li></ul><h4>Science for Climate Justice</h4>Communities on the frontlines of climate change—especially low-income, Indigenous, and historically marginalized groups—deserve a say in what gets studied and funded. I support:<ul><li>Community-driven research priorities</li><li>Participatory science and citizen climate labs</li><li>Equitable access to STEM education and green careers</li></ul><h4>Long-Term Research Is Climate Adaptation</h4>We won’t solve the climate crisis with band-aids or short election cycles. We need research that looks 30, 50, 100 years ahead—and we need to fund it now. That includes:<ul><li>Nuclear fusion and breakthrough energy storage</li><li>Geoengineering governance and ethics</li><li>Forest and ocean carbon sink preservation</li><li>Climate migration planning and health response</li></ul>We must be a country that plans for the future, not one that surrenders to it.

Research, Innovation and the Public Good

Racism isn’t a relic of the past—it is a living, breathing system that still shapes everything from who gets housing to who gets harassed by police. It shows up in our schools, our hospitals, our courtrooms, and our Congress. And while progress has been made, too many lives are still defined or destroyed by the color of their skin.I believe racial justice isn’t just a box to check. It must be at the center of every policy conversation we have. Whether we’re talking about education, housing, healthcare, or criminal justice, we have to confront the deep racial disparities baked into our systems—and work actively to dismantle them.This isn’t about guilt or shame. It’s about truth. It’s about justice. And it’s about building a future where everyone can breathe, thrive, and live free from discrimination.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>An end to systemic racism in policing, including banning racial profiling, demilitarizing police departments, and expanding community-based alternatives</li><li>Equitable education funding to close opportunity gaps in public schools</li><li>Targeted investments in Black and Brown communities, especially in housing, healthcare, and economic development</li><li>Reparative justice policies, including support for H.R. 40 to study reparations and implement restorative frameworks</li><li>Strong civil rights enforcement to protect against discrimination in employment, housing, voting, and healthcare</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>The 9th District is one of the most diverse in the country, and we are stronger because of it. But racial inequities persist. I’ve seen it in my work with women experiencing homelessness. I’ve seen how Black and Brown women face higher barriers to care, to housing, to safety. And I’ve seen how too often, policies are made about communities of color without being made with them.As your representative, I’ll make sure racial justice isn’t siloed off into a single policy—it’s woven through every piece of legislation I support. I’ll listen to community leaders, support grassroots efforts, and make sure our district leads with equity, not just in words but in practice.Because true justice is only possible when it includes everyone.

Racial Justice

I walk with a cane because of bone cancer I had as a child. That’s the kind of disability people notice. But what about the ones they don’t?Disability isn’t always visible. It can be physical or neurological, chronic or intermittent, lifelong or newly acquired. It can look like autism, long COVID, PTSD, diabetes, bipolar disorder, or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. It can be a war injury or a workplace injury. It can be exhaustion from navigating a world not built for you.And yet, every day in America, disabled people are left out; out of policy conversations, out of workplaces, out of housing, and out of healthcare. I’m running for Congress because I’ve lived this firsthand. And I know we can do better.<h3>What I’m Fighting For:</h3><h4>Full Funding and Expansion of Social Security Disability</h4><ul><li>End wait times and arbitrary barriers for SSDI and SSI.</li><li>Increase income limits and asset caps for SSI so disabled people aren’t forced to live in poverty.</li><li>Eliminate the marriage penalty for SSI recipients.</li></ul><h4>Medicare for All—Including Long-Term Supports</h4><ul><li>Cover home- and community-based services (HCBS) as a right, not a waiver or lottery.</li><li>End the institutional bias that pushes people into nursing homes instead of supporting independent living.</li><li>Guarantee access to wheelchairs, mobility aids, hearing aids, communication devices, and adaptive tech.</li></ul><h4>True Accessibility in Every Space</h4><ul><li>Enforce and expand the ADA to cover digital access, transit systems, and new infrastructure.</li><li>Fund accessible, affordable housing designed with disabled people in mind.</li><li>Hold public and private entities accountable for compliance—not just with ramps and elevators, but with sensory-friendly and communication-accessible environments.</li></ul><h4>Neurodivergent and Mental Health Inclusion</h4><ul><li>Recognize autism, ADHD, and other forms of neurodivergence as disabilities under the law, with full protections and supports.</li><li>Invest in trauma-informed, community-based mental health care—not criminalization or forced institutionalization.</li><li>Fund inclusive education that supports students with IEPs and 504 plans from preschool through college.</li></ul><h4>Employment Without Exploitation</h4><ul><li>End subminimum wage for disabled workers.</li><li>Protect and expand remote and flexible work options for those who need them.</li><li>Provide robust vocational rehab and job placement services that respect disabled workers’ skills and autonomy.</li></ul><h4>Nothing About Us Without Us</h4><ul><li>Ensure disabled people are at the table in every policy conversation—from transportation to education to emergency response.</li><li>Support disabled candidates and organizers with campaign finance reforms and accessible public forums.</li><li>Treat disability rights as civil rights—and disability justice as central to every justice movement.</li></ul><h4>My Pledge</h4>I will never treat disability rights as a side issue. This is personal. This is political. And it’s long past time we built a world where every body, every brain, every way of being is treated with dignity and care.

Disability Rights and Inclusion

I had an abortion in 2021. I don’t regret it, and I will never be ashamed of it.I made the decision that was right for me at that moment in my life. I was lucky: I had access to care at the same hospital where I was treated for cancer. I had support. I didn’t have to fly across state lines or face protesters at the clinic. But no one should have to be lucky to access basic healthcare.Bodily autonomy is not up for debate. Every person should have the right to make decisions about their own body, health, and future, without government interference, forced birth laws, or religious extremism.Reproductive justice means more than access to abortion. It means being able to raise children in safe communities. It means access to prenatal care, contraception, gender-affirming care, and comprehensive sex education. It means fighting for maternal health, especially for Black and Indigenous women who are dying in childbirth at alarming rates.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Codify the right to abortion at the federal level—no bans, no exceptions.</li><li>Protect and expand access to abortion medication and clinic-based care across all states.</li><li>End the Hyde Amendment and guarantee federal funding for abortion care.</li><li>Fund reproductive healthcare through Medicare for All, including contraception, gender-affirming care, and fertility treatment.</li><li>Invest in maternal health and birthing justice, especially in underserved communities.</li><li>Defend the rights of parents, trans people, and caregivers to make decisions about their bodies and families with dignity</li></ul>I don’t support term limits on abortion because I trust women to make the decisions that are right for their bodies, their families, and their futures, without the government second-guessing them. Every pregnancy is different. Every life situation is different. Politicians have no place imposing arbitrary timelines on anyone’s autonomy. Reproductive freedom means trusting people, not controlling them.I’m not afraid to say it: I had an abortion. I’m proud of that choice. And I’ll fight to make sure everyone else has the freedom to make theirs, too.<h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Illinois is a reproductive rights stronghold—but even here in the 9th District, access isn’t the same for everyone. Many of my clients, especially low-income women, women of color, immigrants, and survivors of violence, struggle to access affordable reproductive healthcare, birth control, abortion care, and parenting support. Geography doesn’t equal equity.Chicago is home to some of the best providers in the country, but barriers like cost, insurance, transportation, stigma, and childcare still leave too many behind. And with abortion bans spreading in neighboring states, our clinics are under growing pressure, serving out-of-state patients while still trying to meet the needs of people here at home.As your representative, I’ll work to:<ul><li>Expand federal funding for reproductive health clinics in IL-09</li><li>Fight for Medicaid and insurance coverage of abortion and contraception</li><li>Increase support for parents and pregnant people, including housing, childcare, and workplace protections</li><li>Ensure that our district continues to be a safe haven for reproductive freedom, no matter what happens at the federal level</li></ul>Because reproductive justice doesn’t stop at legality—it demands access, equity, and autonomy for all of us.

Reproductive Justice

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We often hear about infrastructure in terms of roads, bridges, and tunnels—but what about the infrastructure that holds our lives together? What about the people caring for children, elders, loved ones with disabilities, and those who are ill?From childcare to eldercare, disability services to home health, care work is what keeps our economy and communities running. It is the invisible scaffolding that supports everything else. Yet in this country, we treat care work as an afterthought—undervalued, underfunded, and overwhelmingly placed on the shoulders of women, particularly women of color. Families are forced to navigate impossible choices between caregiving and working. Seniors and people with disabilities are too often institutionalized rather than supported to live with dignity in their communities. Care workers themselves are underpaid and under-protected.'Care is infrastructure. Without it, nothing else functions. And yet in this country, we treat caregiving like a personal burden instead of a collective responsibility. We force parents—especially mothers—to leave the workforce because childcare is unaffordable or inaccessible. We push older adults into nursing homes because home-based care is out of reach. We ask care workers—often women of color and immigrants—to do physically and emotionally demanding jobs for poverty wages, without healthcare, benefits, or even basic protections.That’s not just bad policy—it’s a failure of values.A just economy invests in the people who hold it up. A society rooted in dignity ensures that no one is punished for needing care or providing it. If we want a stronger future, we must build it on the foundation of care.This is a policy failure. And it’s a moral failure.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>Universal childcare and eldercare programs that don’t bankrupt working families</li><li>A living wage and labor protections for care workers, including home health aides and domestic workers</li><li>Expanded Medicaid funding for in-home and community-based care</li><li>Paid family and medical leave for all</li><li>Investments in long-term care that prioritize independence, dignity, and choice</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Here in the 9th District, I’ve worked directly with women, seniors, and families who are forced to navigate these broken systems every day. I’ve seen older adults denied the ability to age in place because of lack of support. I’ve worked with single moms who can’t find affordable childcare and are pushed further into poverty as a result. I’ve met caregivers who are burning out because they’re doing the work of a full-time job without fair pay or benefits.As your representative, I will push for federal investment in caregiving infrastructure right here at home—and I will work with state and local partners to expand care access across the district. Because everyone deserves to be cared for, and no one should be punished for needing help.

Care as Infrastructure

Raising a child in America shouldn’t feel like a luxury.But for far too many families, especially single mothers and working-class parents, it does. Childcare costs more than rent in many states, including Illinois. And the support systems that are supposed to help are often confusing, underfunded, or simply not there.Parents are being forced to leave their jobs, delay their education, or take on crushing debt just to ensure their kids are safe during the day. Meanwhile, childcare providers, who do some of the most essential work in our society, are paid poverty wages with few benefits and little job security. This isn’t sustainable. And it isn’t fair.Families deserve support. Caregivers deserve dignity. And children deserve a strong, safe start.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>Universal, affordable childcare for every family, funded federally and available regardless of income</li><li>Expanded Head Start and early learning programs that reach all children, especially in underserved areas</li><li>Living wages and benefits for childcare workers, including pathways to unionization and career advancement</li><li>Paid family and medical leave, so parents never have to choose between their child’s health and a paycheck</li><li>Increased support for parents and caregivers, including tax credits, housing support, and accessible parenting resources</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>In the 9th District, I’ve worked with countless women who are trying to build a better life for their children. But childcare barriers stop them at every turn. When you can’t afford childcare, you can’t work, go to school, or pursue stability, and that impacts everyone. It keeps families in poverty. It keeps women out of the workforce. It deepens inequality.As your representative, I’ll push for federal funding to expand childcare options across our district, including support for home-based care providers, community centers, and wraparound services for parents. I’ll work to ensure that every family in IL-09 has the freedom to raise their children with dignity, not desperation.

Affordable Childcare and Supporting Families

Every student deserves access to a high-quality education—and the truth. Censorship isn’t safety. Indoctrination isn’t freedom.Across the country, far-right extremists are trying to rewrite history, ban books, and punish teachers for teaching the truth. They’re attacking public education not because they want to improve it, but because they fear an informed generation that can think critically, challenge power, and build something better.This isn’t just an education issue—it’s a democracy issue. It’s a trauma issue. It’s a justice issue.And let’s be honest: some political leaders are counting on the public staying uninformed. Our current president once said, “I love the uneducated.” That wasn’t a joke—it was a strategy. Because uneducated, uninformed populations are easier to control. Easier to manipulate. Easier to weaponize. Easier to divide.I believe every child has a right to learn in a safe, inclusive environment—one that values curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking. That includes learning the full truth about this country: the good, the bad, and the unfinished. Because you can’t heal what you won’t name, and you can’t fix what you refuse to see.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Fully fund public schools, especially in underserved and historically excluded communities.</li><li>Support teachers and staff with fair pay, union rights, and respect for their expertise.</li><li>Defend inclusive, accurate curriculum that includes Black history, Indigenous history, LGBTQ+ stories, immigrant experiences, and labor movements.</li><li>Ban book bans. No more letting extremists decide what our kids can read.</li><li>Invest in mental health services, counselors, and trauma-informed training in every school.</li><li>Expand universal pre-K and early childhood education so all kids have a strong start.</li></ul>I believe in education that prepares kids to be informed, empathetic citizens, not obedient workers. That means telling the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. Especially then.<h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Here in the 9th District, we have some incredible schools, but we also have deep disparities in funding, curriculum, and student support depending on where you live. Students in underserved neighborhoods often lack access to the same quality of education, mental health resources, and honest, inclusive curriculum as those in wealthier areas. Every child deserves the full truth—about their country, their bodies, and their power.That’s why I’m passionate about launching a pilot program right here in IL-09 that teaches young people about the differences between genders—physically, emotionally, and socially—with the goal of fostering empathy, understanding, and mutual respect. This wouldn’t be your typical sex ed class. It would be a space where students learn not just the biology of puberty, but how to treat each other with dignity across gender lines.As your representative, I’ll fight to:<ul><li>Protect public school funding and oppose efforts to privatize or defund education</li><li>Support teachers and defend their right to teach the full truth, without fear of political retaliation</li><li>Ensure honest, inclusive curriculum that covers history, identity, and civic engagement</li><li>Pilot innovative programs like the one I hope to bring to IL-09 that prepare students not just for tests, but for life in a diverse and complex world</li></ul>Because our kids don’t just need facts; they need understanding, perspective, and tools for empathy.

Education and Truth in Curriculum

We are in a fight for the soul of this country—and we don’t win it by playing nice with authoritarianism. We win it by defending democracy, unapologetically and urgently.Right now, our democracy is under attack—from voter suppression, disinformation, and gerrymandering to politicians openly embracing authoritarian power grabs. The far right is using fear, lies, and cruelty to consolidate control, and too many people in power are either complicit or silent.This isn’t theoretical. It’s happening now. And if we don’t act, we will lose more than just elections—we will lose the ability to even hold them.As a graduate student in political psychology, I study how fear, identity, and trauma shape political behavior. I understand how authoritarian movements manipulate people through manufactured threats, scapegoating, and moral panic. I also understand what it takes to build resilience against those tactics—how to strengthen civic trust, build inclusive coalitions, and speak to people’s hopes instead of their fears.I’m not running for Congress to uphold business as usual. I’m running to protect the foundations of democracy itself: truth, accountability, representation, and the right of every person to have a voice in the decisions that shape their lives.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Restore and expand the Voting Rights Act to end voter suppression and racial gerrymandering.</li><li>End partisan gerrymandering and implement independent redistricting commissions.</li><li>Ban dark money and overturn Citizens United—because billionaires shouldn’t decide our elections.</li><li>Protect the right to protest, organize, and speak freely—even (and especially) when it challenges the powerful.</li><li>Secure our elections from disinformation, foreign interference, and digital manipulation.</li><li>Make Election Day a national holiday and expand automatic voter registration, mail-in voting, and same-day registration.</li></ul>Democracy doesn’t defend itself—we do. And I’m not afraid to say it: fascism is rising. The only way to stop it is to meet it head-on, with courage, with clarity, and with a movement that believes in people over power.

Defending Democracy

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Mental illness and addiction are not moral failings. They are health issues—and they deserve real care, not punishment.I’ve lived through addiction. I’ve fought my way out of it. I had a drug overdose at age 24, and I had to learn how to do everything again: how to walk, how to talk, how to tie my shoes, hold a fork, write my name, and take a shower. And I’ve built a life on the other side. I’ve also worked with people still navigating that same fight—people trying to stay clean, stay alive, and hold on to hope in a system that punishes them for struggling.In this country, we criminalize suffering. We lock people up for having untreated trauma. We send them into courtrooms instead of treatment centers. We offer too little, too late—and then wonder why things don’t get better.Mental health care and addiction recovery should be accessible, affordable, and free of stigma. Everyone deserves the chance to heal, no matter how many times it takes.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Fully fund mental health and substance use treatment programs—in every community, without waitlists or red tape.</li><li>Decriminalize drug use and invest in harm reduction strategies like safe consumption sites and access to naloxone.</li><li>Treat addiction as a public health issue—not a reason to lose your job, your housing, or your children.</li><li>Expand access to trauma-informed care for survivors of violence, incarceration, poverty, and systemic racism.</li><li>Build community-based crisis response teams so that mental health emergencies aren’t met with armed police.</li><li>Guarantee mental health parity in insurance coverage and include mental health care in Medicare for All.</li></ul>No one should have to hit rock bottom to get help. No one should be locked away for needing care. I believe in second chances, third chances—however many it takes. Because people are worth saving. Always.

Mental Health and Addiction Support

No one working full-time should live in poverty. People deserve to thrive, not just scrape by.Right now, millions of people are doing everything “right” - working long hours, juggling multiple jobs, taking care of their families, and still falling behind. Wages haven’t kept up with the cost of living. Meanwhile, billionaires rake in profits while the rest of us are told to budget better.I’ve lived this. Recently, I had to choose between paying my rent and buying groceries. I work full-time. I’m pursuing a master’s degree. And I still found myself staring at my bank account, doing the mental math of survival. If it’s this hard for someone like me, imagine how hard it is for people with even fewer supports.I see it every day in my work, too. People with jobs who still can’t afford a place to live. People who are punished for earning just a little “too much” to qualify for help, when that “too much” is barely enough to live on. This system isn’t broken. It’s working exactly as it was designed: to benefit the wealthy and punish the rest of us for being poor.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Raise the federal minimum wage to a living wage—at least $17–$20/hour, indexed to inflation.</li><li>Strengthen labor protections and unions, including the right to organize, strike, and collectively bargain.</li><li>Guarantee paid sick leave, paid family leave, and predictable schedules—because time is a human right.</li><li>Tax the ultra-wealthy and close corporate loopholes that let billionaires hoard resources while communities go without.</li><li>Create a federal jobs guarantee focused on care work, climate resilience, and public infrastructure.</li><li>End the benefits cliff and stop punishing low-income people for making progress.</li></ul>People aren’t poor because they’re lazy. They’re poor because this economy is rigged. I’m running to unrig it and to build a future where no one has to choose between a roof over their head and food on their table.<h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>In a district as economically diverse as IL-09, the wealth gap isn’t just a statistic; it’s visible on every block. We have neighborhoods where families are barely scraping by, working two or three jobs, and still falling short. We also have some of the most expensive zip codes in the Midwest, where wealth is concentrated and opportunities are inherited, not earned.In my own life, I’ve had to make impossible choices—between paying rent and buying groceries, between staying afloat and falling further behind. And I know I’m not alone. Too many of my neighbors are living one emergency away from crisis, while corporations rake in record profits on the backs of underpaid workers.IL-09 deserves an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. Let’s build a district where nobody works full-time and still lives in poverty, and where economic justice isn’t a dream, it’s a guarantee.

Economic Justice and Living Wages

We cannot call ourselves a just society while survivors are still being failed by every system meant to protect them.Domestic violence is a public health crisis—and a policy failure. Survivors too often face a justice system that doesn’t believe them, housing systems that don’t shelter them, and healthcare systems that don’t treat their trauma. And the risks only multiply for those who are low-income, disabled, LGBTQ+, undocumented, or Black and brown. Domestic violence directly impacts and feeds into the homelessness problems that Chicago and so many other cities across America are facing.I’ve worked as an overnight client advocate at a domestic violence shelter. It was one of the hardest and most rewarding jobs I’ve ever had. I saw firsthand the resilience of survivors and the strength it takes just to survive, to leave, and to start over. But I also saw how badly the system fails people when they’re most in need of protection, support, and care. That experience deepened my commitment to survivor-centered, trauma-informed public policy.Survivors need more than crisis lines and slogans. They need safe housing, trauma-informed care, financial stability, legal protection, and most of all—a system that meets them with support, not suspicion.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Fully fund shelters, housing support, and emergency relocation programs for survivors and their children.</li><li>Ensure paid leave and economic protections for survivors leaving abusive situations.</li><li>Strengthen laws around coercive control, stalking, and tech-enabled abuse.</li><li>Expand trauma-informed training for police, healthcare workers, judges, and case managers.</li><li>Support alternatives to incarceration and community-based interventions that center survivor needs, not just punishment.</li><li>Center the voices of survivors in policy design—especially those who’ve been criminalized for surviving.</li></ul>Survivors deserve to be believed. They deserve to be safe. And they deserve a government that takes their lives—and their healing—seriously.<h3>Resources for Survivors</h3>If you or someone you know needs help, here are trusted organizations that can support you:<ul><li><a href="https://www.thehotline.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">National Domestic Violence Hotline</a> – 24/7 free and confidential support: Call 800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788</li><li><a href="https://www.cawc.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Connections for Abused Women and Their Children (CAWC)</a> – Chicago-based shelter, advocacy, and support services</li><li><a href="https://www.apnaghar.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apna Ghar</a> – Multicultural support for survivors, especially immigrant women</li><li><a href="https://www.betweenfriendschicago.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Between Friends</a> – Counseling, prevention, and education across the Chicago area</li><li><a href="https://www.sarahsinn.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sarah’s Inn</a> – West Suburban services for domestic violence survivors</li><li><a href="https://www.wingsprogram.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">WINGS Program</a> – Housing, counseling, and legal advocacy for survivors across Chicagoland</li></ul>

Domestic Violence and Survivor Justice

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No one should go bankrupt to stay alive. No one should die because they’re poor. Healthcare is a human right—period.I was diagnosed with cancer at 12. I survived because I had access to excellent medical care at the University of Chicago. But I’ve never forgotten how precarious that access felt—how easily it could’ve been different if my family hadn’t had the right insurance, or if we’d lived somewhere else, or if the system had decided I wasn’t worth saving. I am eternally grateful to my doctors, without whose care and expertise I wouldn't be alive today.Too many people in this country aren’t so lucky. They skip treatments. They ration insulin. They suffer in silence because they can’t afford to ask for help. And for what? To protect a system that profits off our pain?Our healthcare system is broken by design, and it’s killing people. We need a complete transformation.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Medicare for All: A universal, single-payer healthcare system that covers everyone—no premiums, no deductibles, no co-pays, no corporate middlemen.</li><li>Full coverage of mental health, dental, vision, reproductive care, and gender-affirming care—because health is more than just hospital visits.</li><li>End medical debt: Cancel past-due bills and regulate predatory billing practices.</li><li>Protect rural and community hospitals from corporate closures and ensure equitable care across geography and identity.</li><li>De-privatize Medicare and keep Wall Street out of our healthcare.</li></ul>Healthcare isn’t just about policy—it’s about values. It’s about what kind of society we are, and who we believe is worthy of care. I believe everyone is.“I survived cancer because I had extraordinary doctors who believed in me and gave me a second chance at life. Two of them are no longer here, but I carry their care with me every day. This campaign is for them, too.”

Universal Healthcare For All

Everyone deserves to be cared for, no matter their age, ability, or income. From birth to old age, dignity should be non-negotiable.Too often in this country, people are only valued for their productivity. Children are neglected, elders are discarded, and people with disabilities are ignored or punished for needing support. But a just society doesn’t treat people like they’re disposable. It takes care of them at every stage of life.I’ve worked with older adults facing isolation, illness, and loss of healthcare coverage. I've sat in waiting rooms at the DHS office for clients whose Medicaid coverage had lapsed for months, only to be told that the paperwork wasn't processed properly and then informed that a box hadn't been checked off where it should have been. There are so many administrative and procedural errors contributing to the loss of coverage in situations where it isn't warranted. I’ve sat with them in broken nursing homes, seen them struggle with systems that treat aging like a burden instead of a natural part of life. I've seen them lie in bed with sores all over their body, waiting for a nurse to come and help them. Nurses and CNAs are struggling too, and that leads to burnout, which leads to a lower quality of care for your loved ones. I’ve also worked with adults trying to rebuild their lives after violence and poverty. What they all have in common is this: the system never saw them as fully human.It doesn’t have to be this way.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Guarantee paid family and medical leave for caregivers of children, elders, and people with disabilities.</li><li>Expand Medicare, Medicaid, and long-term care services—especially home-based and community-based care.</li><li>Improve nursing home conditions, oversight, and staffing so that no one is “warehoused” in the final years of their life.</li><li>Fund universal childcare and early childhood development—because investing in the beginning of life matters just as much as the end.</li><li>Ensure disability rights and full accessibility across healthcare, housing, education, and employment.</li><li>Support intergenerational housing and care models that keep families and communities connected.</li></ul>Our lives are not linear checklists. We grow, we stumble, we age, we change, and through it all, we deserve to be treated with care, not contempt. Dignity is not earned. It’s inherent. And it’s time for our policies to reflect that.We all age, and we all die someday. If we know it's coming for us, why wouldn't we want to improve this system before we get there?

Aging with Dignity

The United States should lead with integrity—not domination. Our foreign policy should reflect our deepest values: peace, human dignity, and global solidarity.For too long, U.S. foreign policy has been shaped by militarism, corporate interests, and colonial mindsets. We’ve prioritized regime change over diplomacy, profit over people, and control over cooperation. That approach has led to endless wars, mass displacement, and a deep erosion of trust in America’s role on the world stage.I believe we need a new path: one rooted in cultural humility, international cooperation, and an unshakable commitment to human rights, including the rights of women, LGBTQ+ people, disabled people, and all those most often silenced.As someone who deeply values cross-cultural understanding, I believe in listening first. In learning from others without forcing our way of life on them. But I also believe in speaking clearly when those in power violate the basic rights of others. We can honor different cultural traditions without turning a blind eye to gender-based violence, political oppression, or state-sponsored cruelty.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>End endless wars and rein in military overreach. Prioritize diplomacy, development, and peacebuilding over armed conflict.</li><li>Cut military aid to oppressive regimes that violate human rights, including those engaged in apartheid, ethnic cleansing, or gender-based persecution.</li><li>Recommit to international human rights frameworks, including protections for women and marginalized communities worldwide.</li><li>Invest in global partnerships that address poverty, public health, education, and climate change, not just military alliances.</li><li>Support refugees, asylum seekers, and displaced peoples with compassion and responsibility.</li><li>Demilitarize foreign policy by transferring resources from weapons to wellness, both abroad and at home.</li><li>Champion women’s rights globally, including access to education, healthcare, bodily autonomy, and political power.</li></ul>Our foreign policy should reflect who we really are, not just what we fear. That means leading with justice, listening with humility, and refusing to fund or excuse oppression anywhere, including within our own borders.

Foreign Policy Rooted in Cooperation and Justice

Every night in America, more than half a million people have nowhere to sleep. That’s not an accident, it’s a political choice.We are the wealthiest country on Earth, an economic juggernaut, yet we treat housing as a reward for good behavior rather than a basic human right. Rents are skyrocketing. Public housing is underfunded. And shelters, when people can even access them, are overwhelmed and under-resourced.I work in this system. I’m a case manager at a homeless shelter. I've seen how mental health, physical health, and domestic violence have all intersected to bring the issue of homelessness to where it is today. I’ve seen what it means to be left outside; not just literally, but politically.And too often, when help is available, it comes with cruel conditions. My clients are only allowed to make $1,500 a month, just $18,000 a year, before they lose their rental assistance entirely. That’s not enough to afford rent in most cities, including ours. These programs are designed to penalize individuals for attempting to regain financial stability. We say we want people to move forward, and then we pull the rug out from under them when they try.Housing isn’t optional. It’s survival. And it’s time we treat it that way.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>Declare housing a human right. No more letting the market decide who gets to have a roof over their head.</li><li>Massively invest in public and deeply affordable housing. Build new units, repair the ones we have, and ensure they’re accessible and safe.</li><li>Expand Housing First programs that provide stable housing without preconditions.</li><li>Fund permanent supportive housing for those with chronic health, mental health, and addiction issues.</li><li>Implement rent control and eviction protections to stop corporate landlords from price-gouging communities.</li><li>Provide direct rental assistance to low-income individuals and families, and stop cutting people off the moment they earn a little more.</li><li>Fund mental health care for the homeless population, get them the care that they need to build themselves back up again</li><li>Integrate harm reduction in our communities with safe injection sites so that at least they will have access to immediate care should an overdose occur, and be provided with clean needles so they don't transmit HIV or other infectious diseases</li><li>Get people connected with services to help them get back on their feet, whether that be a streamlined process to apply for SSI/SSDI, Medicaid, or other programs to assist with their health and overall wellbeing</li></ul>People don’t choose homelessness; this country chooses to allow it. We need a government that believes everyone deserves a place to call home. Anything less is cruelty disguised as policy.

Affordable Housing and Ending Homelessness

Too often in this country, we thank veterans for their service while leaving them to fend for themselves. We plaster “Support Our Troops” on bumper stickers and campaign ads—but when it comes time to deliver real support, we disappear.Veterans face higher rates of homelessness, suicide, chronic health issues, and untreated trauma than nearly any other population in America. Many return home with invisible wounds—PTSD, moral injury, substance use, survivor’s guilt—and are thrown into a healthcare system that is underfunded, overburdened, and bureaucratic. Others struggle to find meaningful work, stable housing, or even basic respect.I don’t speak about this abstractly. I’ve known veterans. I’ve worked with veterans. I’ve seen them treated like heroes one day and burdens the next. That’s not support. That’s abandonment.If we can fund endless wars, we can fund endless care for the people we ask to fight them.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>Universal, guaranteed healthcare for all veterans, including full funding and modernization of the VA, and the ability to opt into Medicare-for-All if preferred</li><li>Streamlined, trauma-informed mental health care, including walk-in crisis services, culturally competent providers, and no-wait support for PTSD and substance use</li><li>Permanent, supportive housing for every unhoused veteran, with wraparound services and no red tape</li><li>Robust job training and guaranteed employment pipelines for returning service members, including union apprenticeships and public service jobs</li><li>Expanded access to education benefits, childcare, legal aid, and disability compensation without unnecessary hurdles</li><li>Accountability from the Department of Defense and VA, including transparency in benefits, discharge upgrades, and long-overdue justice for survivors of military sexual trauma</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>As someone who’s worked in direct service, I’ve met veterans whose trauma went untreated, whose physical ailments were disbelieved, whose paperwork was “lost,” and whose dignity was slowly stripped away by a system that sees them as liabilities instead of human beings. That ends here.As your representative, I’ll fight for a federal guarantee of housing, healthcare, and dignity for every veteran in this district and beyond. I’ll work closely with local VA facilities, shelters, and service organizations to make sure no veteran in IL-09 ever feels forgotten.Because if we truly honor our veterans, it’s not with parades—it’s with policy.

Veterans

We cannot incarcerate our way to safety. Real justice doesn’t just punish—it repairs, restores, and prevents harm in the first place.Our criminal legal system is built on punishment, control, and racialized violence. It doesn’t make us safer—it just creates more trauma. It targets the poor, the mentally ill, people of color, and survivors of violence. It cages people for being addicted, unhoused, or simply unlucky enough to be born into the wrong zip code.I’ve worked with people coming out of that system—people who are trying to rebuild their lives but are denied housing, healthcare, and basic dignity because of a record. I’ve also seen how people are funneled into jails and prisons instead of given the support they actually need.We need a justice system that centers on care, accountability, and healing, rather than punishment for its own sake.Here’s what I’ll fight for:<ul><li>End cash bail, mandatory minimums, and three-strikes laws that keep people locked up based on poverty, not public safety.</li><li>Invest in community safety: violence prevention programs, youth services, mental health care, and housing.</li><li>Expand access to restorative and transformative justice programs that center survivors and communities—not just courts.</li><li>Decriminalize poverty and survival: no one should be jailed for drug use, sex work, or homelessness.</li><li>Fund reentry support, including housing, jobs, mental health care, and record expungement.</li><li>Hold police accountable, demilitarize departments, and reinvest in unarmed crisis response and community services.</li></ul>We need to build a system that asks, what do people need to heal? Not, how can we hurt them more? True safety doesn’t come from punishment. It comes from justice with care at its center.<h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>In the 9th District, and Chicago as a whole, we see the cracks in our justice system every day—on the South Side, in working-class neighborhoods, in communities of color, and in the lives of people reentering society after incarceration. I’ve worked with people who have been criminalized for surviving poverty, addiction, and trauma—then discarded once they’ve served their time. I’ve seen what happens when we choose punishment over healing.We don’t need more cages. We need more care, more prevention, more accountability that actually leads to healing—for victims, for families, for whole communities.As your representative, I’ll fight to:<ul><li>End mandatory minimums and the federal cash bail system</li><li>Invest in alternatives to incarceration, including restorative justice and community-based mental health support</li><li>Fund reentry programs that provide housing, job training, and trauma-informed care</li><li>Demilitarize police forces and hold law enforcement accountable, while investing in the root causes of harm</li><li>Decriminalize poverty, addiction, and survival behaviors, especially among youth, unhoused individuals, and people with mental illness</li></ul>Here in IL-09, we can lead by example. We can show the country what it looks like to build a system that prevents harm, repairs damage, and actually makes communities safer—not more surveilled. We can choose justice that heals.

Justice That Heals

<h3>“I’m only here because medical research was funded. Period.”</h3>When I was 12 years old, I was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, a rare and aggressive form of bone cancer that affects around 200 children in the U.S. each year. There’s no one-size-fits-all treatment for something so rare. My survival depended on decades of research, specialized clinical trials, and the commitment of scientists and doctors who studied diseases most people have never even heard of. I went through chemotherapy and radiation, and I survived because researchers had studied my cancer, because treatment protocols existed, and my doctors knew how best to treat it, and because people before me had fought for the funding that made my survival possible. Two of my oncologists are no longer with us, and I think about them almost every day.But what saved my life is now being dismantled. The Trump administration is gutting the very institutions that gave me a second chance, slashing over $18 billion from the NIH, cutting thousands of active research grants, and grinding life-saving studies to a halt. Cancer research, HIV prevention, mental health innovation, Alzheimer’s therapies, chronic pain studies—all defunded. Thousands of scientists laid off. Clinical trials canceled. Labs shuttered.These aren’t abstract numbers. They are lost years, lost cures, and lost lives.Loan Caps That Will Shrink Our Doctor PipelineAs if cutting medical research funding weren’t enough, this administration is also capping graduate student loans at $150,000, eliminating the Grad PLUS loan program that most medical students rely on to pay for school. The average cost of med school greatly exceeds $200,000. Without federal loan access, countless future doctors, especially students from working-class, rural, and underrepresented backgrounds, will be shut out before they even start.This matters. Because one day it won’t just be a 12-year-old girl with cancer. It will be your child. Your sibling. Your partner. And if we don’t have enough doctors to treat them, if we didn’t fund the research that could save them, what happens then?I am not a politician looking to enrich myself. I’m someone who lived through the consequences of healthcare policy and survived because of (and despite) it.As your representative, I will fight like hell to:<ul><li>Restore NIH, CDC, and NSF funding to protect the future of medicine and public health</li><li>Reverse graduate loan caps so medical school isn’t limited to the wealthy</li><li>Create a national service-based forgiveness program for doctors working in rural or underserved communities</li><li>Ensure funding for pediatric and rare disease research, including long-term survivorship outcomes like the ones I live with today</li><li>Defend science from political attacks and make sure our healthcare system is driven by evidence, not ideology</li></ul>I survived cancer because someone fought for the funding that made my treatment possible. I survived cancer because of my doctors, who developed my treatment protocol and helped save my life. Now I’m fighting for the next kid who’s going to need that same chance. Medical research saved my life, and it shouldn’t take a personal tragedy to make our leaders care about that.

Protecting Medical Research and the Future of Healthcare

Civil liberties are the foundation of a free and democratic society. The right to protest. The right to privacy. The right to speak your mind without fear. The right to due process and equal protection under the law. These rights don’t belong to any one group or party—they belong to all of us. But across the country, we are watching those rights get chipped away by authoritarian actors and government overreach.Laws are being passed to criminalize protest. Journalists are being targeted for telling the truth. Mass surveillance has become routine. And vulnerable communities—especially Black, Brown, immigrant, and Muslim communities—are disproportionately impacted when constitutional rights are violated.Freedom isn’t real if it only applies to some of us.We must fight not just for civil liberties in theory—but in practice, for every person, in every ZIP code.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>The right to protest and dissent, including opposing laws that criminalize demonstrations or target activists</li><li>Digital privacy protections against mass surveillance and data exploitation by corporations or government agencies</li><li>Freedom of the press, including protections for journalists and whistleblowers</li><li>An end to discriminatory policing, surveillance, and profiling, especially in marginalized communities</li><li>Strong enforcement of First and Fourth Amendment rights, including opposition to illegal search, seizure, or suppression of speech</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>Here in the 9th District, we’ve seen protests in defense of Black lives, immigrant rights, and reproductive freedom. We’ve seen students, organizers, and everyday people speak out—peacefully and powerfully. And we’ve also seen fear-mongering attempts to silence or criminalize those voices.As your representative, I’ll defend your right to speak, organize, and live free from intimidation—whether from the state or from extremists. I’ll work to ensure policies that keep us safe don’t come at the cost of our freedoms, and that our civil liberties aren’t up for debate when they’re most inconvenient.Because freedom doesn’t protect itself. We do.

Protecting Civil Liberties

The United States spends more on its military than the next ten countries combined—yet we can’t seem to find the money for healthcare, housing, education, or mental health care. We’ve been told that endless wars and bloated defense budgets make us safer. But real safety doesn’t come from missiles and tanks. It comes from stable housing, strong communities, access to care, and opportunities for all.Militarism abroad often goes hand in hand with violence and oppression at home. It’s no coincidence that many of the weapons used in our wars overseas end up in the hands of police departments right here in our neighborhoods. The same logic that justifies bombing villages also justifies criminalizing poverty. We must redefine what safety means—and who it serves.<h3>If I’m elected, I will fight for:</h3><ul><li>A drastic reduction in the Pentagon budget, redirecting funds toward healthcare, education, climate resilience, and community well-being</li><li>An end to endless wars and unauthorized military interventions abroad</li><li>Demilitarization of local police forces, including an end to the 1033 program that transfers military-grade weapons to police departments</li><li>Robust diplomacy and global cooperation as the default tools of foreign policy—not violence</li><li>Support for veterans, including mental health services, housing, and trauma-informed care—not just performative patriotism</li></ul><h3>What this means for IL-09:</h3>As your representative, I’ll push for a federal budget that reflects our values—not the weapons industry’s bottom line. I’ll support community-led public safety models, peacebuilding, and policies that ensure our foreign relations are rooted in human rights, not power projection. And I’ll make sure our district’s voice is part of the movement for peace—not more war.

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