Jewish Family Services (JFS) to bring EVICTED author to town in May
Event aims to address the urgent need for safe and affordable housing in Milwaukee
Evicted by Matthew Desmond
MILWAUKEE (Feb. 7, 2018) – Jewish Family Services (JFS) announced today that it is bringing Professor Matthew Desmond to Milwaukee on May 16, 2018 for a luncheon event: Home and Hope: A Community Call to Action, focusing on the urgent need for safe and affordable housing in our city, and celebrating JFS’s 150th year as a leading provider of social services in Milwaukee. This event will be Professor Desmond’s first public lecture in Milwaukee since winning the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Evicted.
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City exposes the vicious cycle of poverty that deepens our country’s vast inequality. This crisis is one of the leading social justice issues of our time. The event’s call to action seeks to unite the people and organizations striving to make a difference in a range of areas affecting our city’s most vulnerable populations but lacking in a coordinated, collaborative action plan.
Starting in 2009, JFS took action to address the urgent community need for safe and affordable housing options for individuals with disabilities, seniors and low-income families of individuals of different races/ethnicities, faiths, cultures, and professions. JFS quickly recognized the importance of stable housing as the foundation to successfully address clients’ unique needs. Over the past nine years, JFS’s housing subsidiary has helped over 550 individuals in need.
“As Professor Desmond describes in the book, 16,000 adults and children are evicted every year in Milwaukee, causing a ripple effect of additional challenges and hardships. This scenario is being repeated in cities around the country,” said Donna Triplett, JFS’s Vice President of Development and Communications. “If any city should be taking the lead on this issue, it should be us.”
Tables and sponsorships are available for purchase now, and general admission tickets go on sale for the event in April. For more information, contact JFS leadership at 414-225-1336 or development@jfsmilw.org.
About Jewish Family Services (JFS)
Jewish Family Services (JFS) is one of the oldest nonprofit organizations in the state of Wisconsin. Founded in 1867 as the Hebrew Relief Society, the agency was established to meet the emerging needs of the European and Russian Jewish population migrating to the United States. The mission of Jewish Family Services is to provide supportive services that will strengthen families, children and individuals throughout the life cycle within the context of their unique needs and traditions.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.
