Posted by A2J w/Angela; by Angela Inzano
I don’t know about you, but I am 100% over winter already. Record-setting negative temperatures? Slippery, snowy sidewalks? What are we, penguins and polar bears?!
This is the time of year, every year for the past 14 I’ve lived here, that I wonder why on earth I live in Chicago.
Of course, then I see the magic of the lights on Michigan Avenue, or the snow falling around the skyline, and I remember all the reasons I love this city (including how beautiful it is the rest of the year). But, still. I just can’t even some days.
If you’re like me, and have these seasonal blues, have I got the metaphorical chicken soup to warm you from the inside out! Each year, the CBA’s Legal Aid Committee puts together a compilation of highlights from the past twelve months. Organizations each submit up to three of their favorite “wins” from the year before and, let me tell you, we have an incredible community of superhero lawyers here in Chicago.
Ok, who else remembers this blast from the past? Did you know there are over 250 versions of these books now?! Mind blown.
From protecting the environment to make our air cleaner, to ensuring that low-income college students can focus on their education and not how they get their food; from pursuing educational equity in our public schools to preventing lead exposure in children, our legal aid community had a busy and impactful 2018. They protected our right to participate in democracy, and they passed legislation to give people second chances. They secured justice for children, families, immigrants, the elderly, people with disabilities, veterans, survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, and countless others.
Every year, I love to sit down in front of the fireplace with a warm blanket and a cup of hot chocolate and read through the past year’s highlights. It inspires me to start the year off on the right foot, knowing all this good is happening every day in our legal community.
It might still be cold outside for a couple more months, but hopefully this can give you some warm fuzzies to last until the river turns green and maybe even until Sixteen Candles starts touring street festivals again.
