August 2013 marked twenty years since advocate Diane Nilan created ”Charlie’s Bill,” officially known as the Illinois Education for Homeless Children Act. In August 1993 a mother staying at a shelter was told that her children could not return to District 204 schools due to the fact that they were homeless, according to The Beacon News. The mother and Nilan both felt the need for support and so Nilan and a small team of fellow advocates decided to work toward improved state legislation.
Pat Von Doren, a photojournalist who collaborated with Nilan, took a picture of Charlie. This picture would later become the face of “Charlie’s Bill”, the new legislation that allowed homeless children to continue attending their schools. “The fact that we got ordinary citizens to come together and get behind Charlie’s Bill was at the root of its success,” Nilan said to The Beacon News.
Charlie is now in his 20s, and he has a job and a family. According to Nilan, he is a testament to the strong spirit of many homeless kids. Eight years ago, Nilan started the non-profit ”Hear Us” after selling everything she owned in order to give homeless families a voice. “If some- one had told me 20 years ago that today I’d be driving around in a motorhome, as a homeless advocate, I’d have thought they were crazy,” Nilan said. One of the most important things she does is to make sure that school districts interpret the law correctly.
“My Own 4 Walls” is her video that helps her bring the voices of homeless children to school officials. Nilan was recently appointed to the board of the National Coalition for the Homeless. To learn more about Diane Nilan’s work, go to www.HearUs.us.
