26th Ward Alderperson Jessie Fuentes is a queer Latina grassroots organizer, educator, and public policy advocate. Her work is informed by fifteen years of experience in education, criminal justice reform, affordable housing, and sustainable community development.

Growing up in Humboldt Park amidst the generational traumas of parental substance use, mental illness, and job instability, Jessie resorted to dealing with her own struggles of resentment and anger with the juvenile justice system, as experienced by far too many young Chicagoans.

Jessie found a home at Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos High School, an alternative high school in the heart of Humboldt Park. Jessie was politicized by educators who understood her life experiences. She graduated high school, earned a degree from NEIU, and returned home to Humboldt Park to serve as the Dean of Students at Roberto Clemente Community Academy, and later her alma mater. As Dean, she ensured Black and Latine students had the resources to transcend trauma and pursue their aspirations. Most recently as Director of Policy and Youth Advocacy at the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, she championed community-driven solutions that address violence, housing affordability, and re-entry for returning citizens.

During her first term as alderperson, she has proudly led legislative victories, including the One Fair Wage ordinance to eliminate the sub-minimum wage for tipped workers, the resolution for the national fight for parole in place for 11 million undocumented workers in the U.S., the Northwest Side Housing Preservation Ordinance to protect communities from gentrification, and, most recently, the COPA Amendment to ensure accountability of Welcoming City Ordinance violation complaints.

Additionally, Alderperson Fuentes chairs the Subcommittee on Youth Employment and is the first alder to bring community-driven zoning, participatory budgeting, and the VPI-centered Community Safety Committee to the 26th Ward.