RAC-IL

RAC-IL's work was made possible with generous seed funding from the Michael & Alice Kuhn Foundation.

The Illinois Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC-IL) is organizing the Reform Jewish community to act collectively to build a more just and compassionate Land of Lincoln for All.  We are locally-led, and the shared priorities identified by our clergy, lay leaders and youth advocates include increasing immigrant justice and racial justice.  RAC-IL currently includes more than 25 Reform synagogues (over 80% of our movement), representing more than 50,000 Reform Jews in our state.

Join RAC-IL's 2022 Legislative Campaign "Shomer Shelter: Removing Barriers to Housing"

Housing discrimination in any form is antithetical to our belief that all people should be treated with dignity, justice, and respect. During the 2022 legislative session, RAC-IL will work with the Illinois Coalition for Fair Housing to end source-of-income discrimination in housing. Currently, renters are turned away simply because they use housing vouchers, Social Security, or other public benefits rather than traditional wages to pay rent. This practice disproportionally affects people of color, seniors, veterans, and single parents. Join RAC-IL’s virtual launch on Thursday, March 3 at 7pm CT to learn more and lend your support to this campaign.

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RAC-IL Victories

  • RAC-IL was proud to help secure passage of the Pretrial Fairness Act in January of 2021 as part of the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice. Read more about RAC-IL’s role in making Illinois the first state to completely abolish money bond.
  • During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, RAC-IL pivoted our priorities, along with our partners, to successfully advocate for more than $90 million in emergency relief for immigrant families who were excluded from federal stimulus and assistance programs. RAC-IL also participated in a campaign to release more than 1,300 people from Cook County Jail in Chicago, which had become a hotspot for the pandemic. Read more about RAC-IL’s COVID-19 advocacy.
  • RAC-IL’s leadership in the Reform Movement’s 2020 Civic Engagement Campaign brought more than 1,000 leaders from 26 congregations into action to generate more than 40,000 voter contacts in Illinois and through our grassroots partners to those targeted for voter suppression in Wisconsin.
  • As part of the Campaign for a Welcoming Illinois, RAC-IL celebrated the following victories for immigrant justice:
    • Keep Illinois Families Together Act (2019) prohibits state and local law enforcement from “deputizing” officers as ICE agents
    • Retaining Illinois Students Equity (RISE) Act (2019) allows equitable access to financial aid for higher education for those previously denied, especially DACA and transgender students, as well as primarily African American students disproportionately impacted by under-resourced schools
    • Victims of Immigrant Communities Empowering Survivors (VOICES) Act  (2018) allows victims of domestic violence and other survivors to report crimes to police without fear of deportation.

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Previous Actions and Events

In 2020, RAC-IL’s Legislative Agenda included campaigns addressing immigrant justice and criminal justice reform. Due to the global pandemic, RAC-IL pivoted to a COVID-19 Agenda to meet immediate needs prioritized by our coalition partners.

RAC-IL 2019 Leadership Gathering

In February 2019, more than 100 clergy, lay- and youth-leaders convened for the 2019 Campaign Preview and Leadership Gathering. RAC-IL leaders were honored to be joined by Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton, as well as local criminal justice reform experts.

View the photos from the event on our Facebook page

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RAC-IL's work was made possible with generous seed funding from the Michael & Alice Kuhn Foundation.

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