CHICAGO, Sept. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Cheryle Robinson Jackson today formally kicked off her campaign for the U.S. Senate from Illinois at a small business on Chicago's south side that she helped thrive as President of the Chicago Urban League. Jackson started Project NextOne at the Urban League to incubate and foster small businesses which she sees as critical for economic recovery and job creation.
"History shows us that in times of recession small businesses have led the way forward and out of recession. After all, entrepreneurship is what this country was founded on and it has always been the economic engine for creating jobs right in the communities where we live," Jackson said. "That's why at the Urban League, I proposed the Illinois Job Stimulus Fund to help small businesses weather the storm at a time when financial institutions clamped down on credit despite themselves being bailed out."
Jackson said people need a Senator who is one of them, who has shared their experiences and is committed to solving problems they face in their daily lives.
"At the Chicago Urban League, I saw first-hand the devastating impact this recession has had on our middle-class and working families and I was in the trenches working everyday to help solve those problems. And from that vantage point, I now know more than ever, Illinois needs a Senator that understands everyday people and the challenges they face," she said.
Jackson said empowering people requires economic opportunity, a good education, and quality health care.
"In the three years I have been president and CEO of one of America's oldest civil rights groups, I have become convinced that economically empowering people through access to good jobs, affordable and quality health care, and education is the backbone to build strong communities, a strong nation, and the way forward for Illinois." Jackson said.
Jackson said empowering women economically is critical to build security for families.
"More and more women are the head of their household. They also are the largest group suffering from home foreclosures and they are likely to get paid less than a man for the same job. It's now more imperative than ever to provide quality health care, to assist families and homeowners, protect our reproductive rights, and to support and enforce the Lilly Ledbetter Act, where a woman must be paid an equal dollar for an equal days work," Jackson said.
Jackson also said that an equal chance to a quality education is crucial for our state's economic future.
"Recently, the 'National Organization to Learn' ranked Illinois 45th in the nation among the worst public schools. These schools continue to be filled with poor and minority children right here in Illinois. This is why last year I led the Urban League in a lawsuit against the state of Illinois and the Illinois Board of Education to change the way schools are funded because I know we can do better," she said.
Jackson vowed a new kind of leadership in the U.S. Senate on behalf of the people of Illinois.
"Families from Rockford to Peoria to East St. Louis face real problems like rising unemployment, schools that don't educate and a health care system they can't afford. I am running for the U.S. Senate because the people of Illinois deserve an honest, independent broker and a bold advocate in Congress who is a problem solver and not just a politician," she said.
SOURCE Cheryle Robinson Jackson
Cheryle Robinson Jackson
