Illinois' ACORN: Does it fall very far from the tree?

As far as is currently known and according to spoken and written assertions of Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) the Chicago branch has not been tainted by the most recent scandal whose revelation was set in motion by Conservative activists, James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles. There are suggestions that ACORN may have a financial connection to Service Employees International Union (SEIU), an organization that contributed $538,963.00 to the former, ousted Illinois Governor Blagojevich. Even so, in Illinois, ACORN is not under investigation. So, perhaps, in Illinois, ACORN can be trusted – even while in many other places, the organization is under siege.

History
What is ACORN in its own words?

Although the organization acknowledges that ACORN has, in its own words, tried “…to make the American dream of home ownership available to everyone who wants it and to keep people in the homes they already have…”; the group also has posted a video and letter on its homepage. The message in both acknowledges the recent impropriety exposed on videotapes made as a part of an undercover investigation at several of its branches. In part, the letter, entitled “What We Are Doing: ACORN Housing responds to recent allegations,” states:

"While nothing excuses how a handful of our staff responded, we will use these incidents as an opportunity to insure that AHC operates according to the highest moral and ethical standards. We are taking steps to make sure that all employees know and understand the organization's standards, the behavior demanded by those standards, and the procedures and policies we have in place to enforce them. We are instituting an expanded series of mandatory trainings on ethical standards and behavior. We are initiating a thorough review of our existing policies and procedures."  Right now what ACORN is most assuredly is - is under fire.

What has ACORN done in Chicago?

On the local website for the Chicago branch, the Chicago ACORN sets forth the activities of the local community group. They include: housing and predatory lending counseling. Additionally, the Chicago branch boasts about “demonstrations on city-wide issues, at city council and school board meetings” as well as campaigning and free tax preparation for communities like Englewood, West Englewood, North Lawndale, “and Little Village, in the South Suburbs”. The site page concludes with a bold, populist banner declaring in capital letters: “The people united will never be defeated!” Though no sting of the sort carried about Giles and O’Keefe has been captured out of Illinois’ Chicago ACORN, the name of the organization may now be synonymous with the promotion of crime captured during their investigation. This linkage, fair or unfair, may indeed defeat the entire community group.

What is ACORN in the words of supporters?

A collage of ACORN’s CEO, Bertha Lewis’ statements reveal a high probability that there are many, silent supporters of the organization - people without the power or visibility to balance ACORN’s current reputational status. Lewis has said: “[W]e actually make sure that, you know, what we do internally is serving our constituents: 500,000 poor black and brown, Asian and white people in this country.” And it is likely that these people she is referring to in her statement support ACORN even now. Additionally, there is evidence that ACORN, until recently, had a great deal more support than it would now appear – bipartisan support.

There is a picture of former candidate for President of the United States, Senator John McCain, R-AZ at an immigration reform event from March of 2006. Bertha Lewis suggests that Senator McCain is only one of many members of Congress who have abandoned ship in the wake of ACORN’s troubles, saying: “We are sure that the extremists he is trying to get into a froth will be even more excited to learn that John McCain stood shoulder to shoulder with ACORN, at an ACORN co-sponsored event, to promote immigration reform."

Furthermore, information has been released that show that even after a vote in the House of Representatives to cut off ACORN’s funding, some members of Congress supported the community group. The House voted 347 to 75 to cut off ACORN's funding. Of the congressmen who did not vote to defund ACORN, only Congressman Charles Rangel, D-Harlem commented. And though his action was tacitly supportive, the statement he put out was not a clear endorsement.
"Our founding fathers wrote protections into the constitution precisely for times like these when momentary and fleeting passions might indict and convict groups of people without proper due process," he said.

While there are other objections to Congressional intervention – mostly on constitutional grounds – political support on the Hill does not appear to be unequivocal and vocal.

What is ACORN in the words of critics?

There are claims that ACORN has been involved in embezzlement; submitting bogus voter registration cards; and forging signatures on ballot initiatives in 12 states since 2004. ACORN Ohio employees have been accused of illegal elections practices in New Mexico, Florida, Colorado, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Virginia and also other states. Critics of ACORN say that the organization is a criminal outfit structured like an octopus that has its tentacles into many conflicting realms that are illegal and unethical.

What led to the current scandal involving the ACORN tapes?

This is not the first time that ACORN has received bad press and been accused of bad behavior. During the presidential campaign that concluded with the election of our 44th President, Barrack Hussein Obama; ACORN employees were indicted and even plead guilty to charges of voter fraud. Their practices were investigated by the media. Responses to the group being highlighted so prominently were largely characterized as ideological. Then the first undercover video out of the ACORN Baltimore office was released.

Following up on a pessimistic supposition - that is, that “ACORN is corrupt and it is in their nature to promote and disguise illegal behavior”, 20-year- old Florida International University journalism student, Hannah Giles and 25-year-old and self-described independent filmmaker, James O’Keefe put into motion a “sting”.

Giles, posing as a prostitute and O’Keefe, posing as her pimp set out to test their hypothesis by requesting advice on how to obtain tax-payer funded, low-income housing…to shelter under-age, illegal immigrant girls from El Salvador. Giles and O’Keefe claimed that the children would be employed as sex slaves. This approach was tried, with very little alteration to the story in Baltimore, MD and four more cities – Washington DC, New York, San Bernardino and San Diego.

ACORN finds itself under fire now, because of the nearly identical response from each successive office: ACORN officials advised Giles and O’Keefe how to falsify tax forms and seek illegal benefits for 13 "very young" girls.

Fallout

Maybe it is because there have been no similar investigations launched in Illinois that Senators Dick Durbin, D-IL and Ronald W. Burris, D-IL as well as Representatives Danny K. Davis, D.-IL, Jesse Jackson Jr., D-IL, Bobby Rush and Jan Schakowsky, D-IL were among the 75 “no” votes on the issue of whether to cut off funds to ACORN.

However, while employees of the grass-roots group has not been shown to dispense advice to Giles and O’Keefe (thinking they were a prostitute and pimp, respectively) in what have amounted to fraud and tax evasion in an Illinois ACORN office; the U.S. Census Bureau has severed ties with ACORN which was supposed to assist in conducting the 2010 census. And, among other reactions that must be concerning from the perspective of the community organization, is that of the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS has drastically altered its relationship with ACORN that administered a free tax advice program to low and moderate income tax filers before ACORN was removed from its role.

“It’s unfortunate that increasing pressure on our partners in the face of the attacks on ACORN means that low-income families in our neighborhoods will suffer with the loss of this service,” Bertha Lewis, ACORN CEO says of the severed relationship on the ACORN.org website.

Since the intense scrutiny of ACORN began, several attorneys general; the Justice Department; the Treasury Department; and members of Congress have either launched investigations or suggested that thorough review of ACORN is warranted.

ACORN files suit against O’Keefe, Giles and Breitbart.com in Maryland

Aside from statements issued by Bertha Lewis, the group’s CEO that have all, to some extent been altered or withdrawn; ACORN’s most notable response of late to the most recent scandal has been to file suit against Giles, O’Keefe and also a web company of Andrew Breitbart, Breitbart.com. Biggovernment.com is where the infamous videos were initially released, and it is a web project of Breitbart’s company.

A question that may become more pressing in days to come, if the tide against ACORN does not turn is: Where will those on the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum in Illinois go if ACORN services are no longer available in a time of undisputed economic strain in the state, the country and the world?

For more info: Visit the ACORN Chicago website.