Let’s build up Kankakee
We face a moment of systemic change across the country, where the economy is shifting around us and our communities are clamoring for justice.
Now we must decide whether we want to hold tight to a notion of what Kankakee used to look like or embrace the change to create a better, brighter, more inclusive Kankakee.
It’s time to choose whether we will fall further behind in our pension and bonding debt or harness our diverse assets to grow our economy and create opportunities for all Kankakeeans.
Let’s work together to build up Kankakee.
Dave’s Background
Kankakeean by birth. Kankakeean by choice.
Born and raised in Kankakee, Dave returned home to raise a family and practice law after graduating from Harvard Law School and working as a constitutional lawyer for the City of Chicago.
Dave is the author of Pembroke: A Rural, Black Community on the Illinois Dunes, published by SIU Press in 2016 and documenting the remarkable history of the community in southeastern Kankakee County.
Husband of Anya Hurtado Baron and father of Remy Baron (age 1), Dave also volunteers as a mentor at Kankakee High School and the lead attorney for the Kankakee Co. NAACP Legal Aid Clinic,
As a side gig, Dave turns maps into art. His designs of Kankakee have been featured at local art galleries, on coffee bags, and most recently as one of Downtown’s newest murals on Schuyler Avenue.
