South Cook News

Chris Butler argues the time for the people of the First Congressional District to be heard is a long time in the making.

“In our community, there are a lot of hardworking people whose voices and values have really been overlooked,” Butler said in a recent interview with radio talk show hosts Dan Proft and Amy Jacobsen where he talked about his campaign to replace longtime U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Chicago).

“The reason I got into this race is really because I’m not sure that the mean voter and the mean resident in the community that I’m looking to represent are being represented by a lot of what we see coming out of our politics right now,” he said.  

Butler vows that all will change if he is elected to succeed Rush, who recently announced he plans to retire after nearly 30 years in the seat.

The Democratic Congressional candidate already has a clear vision of what he thinks needs to come next.

“From the very beginning of this campaign, I’ve been saying that what we need in the First Congressional District is not just another Democrat, but a new kind of Democrat, he said. “When it comes to things like empowering parents to really be able to pursue a high quality education for their children, that’s important. People want that. When it comes to things like protecting the sanctity of life, and especially the bond between parent and child and the ability to advocate for a child’s care, we just saw that stripped away in the state of Illinois – and the vast majority of people in our state and in this district didn’t want to see that happen.”

A pastor and community advocate, Butler said he’s long been fighting for his community on those issues and more.

“I’ve been working on these issues for a long time, and I know that some of these things are going to be challenged by the establishment of my party,” he said. “But I’ve been campaigning since April, I’ve been working in these communities since I was literally 12 years old, and I really think you find these values in the community, and it’s time for them to find a voice and representation.”

As he crisscrosses the community, Butler said he’s hearing more and more from residents that want somebody in Congress who’s going to focus on the issues that matter to families.

“How do we access high-quality education for our children,” he said. “How do we make sure that we do have access to quality, affordable housing, quality, affordable health care? How do we make sure that we can have access to jobs? That we can actually work and earn a solid living without being distracted on a lot of these other sidebar issues that really run contrary for a lot of folks in the community.”

Butler listed education as topping the list of things he desperately wants to see improve across the community.  

“I know all too intimately how the opportunity for a quality education can change the trajectory of somebody’s life,” he said. “I think there’s a simple answer here: empower parents. Give them the tools, give them the money in the form of some kind of tax credit, voucher, something – find a way to empower parents to advocate for their children. The problem is there are advocates on the teachers’ side, the union, there’s institutional advocacy for the district, and parents don’t have enough tools to advocate for their students. And I think it’s time for us to just simply give parents those tools.”

Born in Chicago as part of what he describes as a “working poor” family, Butler recalls his first training as a community organizer coming when he was in sixth grade.

Butler went on to become the first in his family to attend college and later became a Young Adult Coordinator on former President Barack Obama’s 2004 campaign for U.S. Senate.  

Butler insists he is now running for Congress because “he believes that every person from every walk of life deserves an active, engaged advocate.”