Despite Chicago’s shelter-in-place order, violence in our city has not decreased amid COVID-19—in fact, last week saw the most violent day of 2020 so far. As we strive to keep our participants safe from infection, we also recognize that our services remain a critical component of that safety.
We are hearing directly from the men we serve that they want to stay engaged with READI Chicago during this pandemic, and we are committed to continuing to deliver robust services to the best of our ability.
We have moved case management, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and professional development (PD) to online and remote platforms whenever possible, and outreach teams have been providing food and other essential resources to participants while practicing social distancing.
We also recognize that there are misconceptions in the communities we serve about the risk of COVID-19, even as we know that the virus will disproportionately impact the men and communities we serve. We see dispelling myths and disseminating accurate information about COVID-19 as an imperative, and we have begun activating staff and participants as credible messengers in their communities to help spread accurate and culturally competent information about the virus and how to stay safe.
We remain steadfast in our commitment to our staff, participants, partners, and communities. We have always known that READI Chicago is a public health intervention, and now we are seeing that reality through new eyes.
Hear directly from our staff and participants below about how we are relentlessly persisting through COVID-19.
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More ways to get involved
- Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram to stay updated on the latest developments with our work.
- Share stories of our courageous participants and employees, and help us spread accurate information about how to keep vulnerable populations safe from COVID-19.
- Make a gift to help employees across the Alliance provide access to critical supportive services to those who are most vulnerable.
- Donate homemade masks to help fight COVID-19.
We are grateful for the support and care you have for the individuals we serve, and for our employees who are on the frontlines every day.
