NASW PAC Illinois Backing Anita Alvarez for Cook County State’s Attorney Post
from NASW IL
The State Political Action Committee is endorsing Democratic candidate Anita Alvarez for Cook County State’s Attorney. Alvarez, in addition to being an attorney, is a 1982 BSW graduate of Loyola University Chicago School of Social Work. If elected, she plans to work hard in renewing the fight against domestic violence, improving the juvenile justice system and maintaining community policing. More

Hundreds Line Up for Flood Food Stamps
from the Chicago Tribune
Hundreds of south suburban residents whose homes were damaged in last month's flooding formed long lines outside a state office starting around 3 a.m. for food vouchers that will help recoup some of what they lost. More

Black, DeYoung Play Experience VS. Change in Race for 104th
from The News-Gazette
At this time more than ever, state Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville, said it's important to send someone to Springfield with proven experience in championing East Central Illinois and downstate issues and helping constituents navigate state bureaucracy. Democratic challenger Lori DeYoung said it's time for someone with fresh ideas and a different approach to doing the job to take over. More

Social Workers Are Laughing
from The New Social Worker
Did you know there are more than 6,000 laughter clubs around the globe designed to promote good physical and mental health, a joyful spirit, and world peace? Social workers are quickly discovering Laughter Yoga™, a new body-mind fitness craze that is sweeping the world. Laughter Yoga is a dynamic, simple stress-reducing activity, appropriate for all sectors of social work, especially in health care, geriatric settings, academic, and mental health settings. More

Suicide on the Rise for Middle-aged Whites
from USA Today
Suicide rates in the USA are up after more than a decade of dropping, and middle-aged whites primarily account for the increase, a report says. The rate for whites 40 to 64 years old jumped 19 percent for women and 16 percent for men from 1999 to 2005, say researchers from the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. More

Cook County Foreclosure Cases Could Top 42,000 This Year
from the Chicago Tribune
Just off the elevators on the 28th floor of the Daley Center, a scene of arresting beauty unfolds. Sunlight glints off Lake Michigan, high-definition views extend for miles and the city seems almost suspended through the lobby's wall of windows. Not that anyone would notice: Cook County's foreclosure court is so busy with the wreckage of the sub-prime mortgage crisis that the number of judges has been increased from 10 to 14, and they begin their new schedules this week. More

Federal Law Enforcement Helps To Tackle Expanding Gang Problem
from The Wall Street Journal
Federal and local officers swooped into the popular vacation spot of Santa Barbara, Calif., recently to arrest nine alleged members of a Hispanic street gang, as law enforcement tries to tackle a gang problem that has been expanding from urban settings to less-populated areas. The arrests were part of an indictment unsealed Wednesday in Los Angeles federal court against 28 alleged members of the Santa Barbara gang, known as the Eastside Gang. Allegations in the indictment include racketeering, murder, drug dealing and "hate crimes against African Americans." More

Homeless Numbers 'Alarming'
from USA Today
More families with children are becoming homeless as they face mounting economic pressures, including mortgage foreclosures, according to a USA TODAY survey of a dozen of the largest cities in the nation. Local authorities say the number of families seeking help has risen in Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Seattle and Washington. More

Minority Trauma Victims More Likely To Die
from the Chicago Sun-Times
Blacks and Hispanics who receive treatment for head injuries and other trauma are more likely to die afterward than whites with similar injuries, and, regardless of race, trauma victims who lacked insurance died much more often than those who were insured, new research shows. The study, published in this week's Archives of Surgery, offers the latest evidence of how race and insurance status affect patient outcomes – whether the condition in question is cancer, heart disease or diabetes. More

More Staff Needed to Protect Children from Abuse in Dane County, Wis.
from Wisconsin State Journal
Dane County social workers, shaken by the death last summer of a child released from county supervision, are worried they won't be able to protect abused children unless they have more staff. They pointed out that the county hadn't added more social workers in a decade, even after a 2000 staffing study suggested the department was short two positions. More

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