Domestic violence in Chicago is rising at alarming rates. This year alone, domestic homicides are up 18 percent compared to last year, and fatal shootings tied to domestic violence have surged by nearly 50 percent. Calls to Illinois’ domestic violence hotline have more than doubled since before the pandemic. Survivors and their families are crying out for help.

Yet at the very moment the crisis is deepening, city funding for gender-based violence services is set to be cut in half. In 2025, Chicago budgeted $21 million for services like counseling, legal aid, rapid rehousing, and trauma care. But as federal COVID relief dollars expire and rental tax revenues shrink, that funding could plummet — even as demand for help continues to climb.

We know what these cuts mean in real life. Resilience, a crisis center for rape and sexual assault survivors, has already had to cut six positions because of federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) reductions. Mujeres Latinas en Acción, which supports immigrant survivors, warns that women are being denied help at the very moment they need it most. Survivors like Margarita Trujillo — once turned away because she hadn’t been physically assaulted — remind us that abuse isn’t just physical, it’s psychological too. These stories show how thin the safety net already is.

Chicago cannot afford to turn its back on survivors. We are calling on Mayor Brandon Johnson and the entire Chicago City Council to protect — and expand — funding for gender-based violence services in the 2026 city budget. Survivors deserve safe housing, counseling, legal support, and the chance to rebuild their lives.

Budget shortfalls are real. But public safety is about more than policing — it’s about protecting people in their own homes and relationships. Cutting funding now will only cost more lives.

Chicago must send a clear message: we will not abandon survivors.

Add your name to demand that Mayor Johnson and City Council fully fund services to stop this crisis.