Meet Miracle Jenkins
Miracle grew up in a family where resources were scarce, where he and his siblings were reliant on food stamps to eat, and every month, the groceries would still run out by the end of the third week. Free breakfast and lunches at school also provided some refuge from hunger, but things were hard, and the family even dipped in and out of homelessness, while both parents struggled with addiction. Miracle’s father eventually lost his battle, overdosing while Miracle was in high school. Miracle’s mother, wanting to provide a better life for her children, made the tough decision to get clean, and turned to her church community to get help. Not only was she able to recover from her addiction when Miracle was in elementary school, but she was able to get a housing stipend to move her family to what she believed to be a nicer, safer, community, right here in Evanston, Illinois.
Miracle and his siblings, his identical twin Seth, their sister Starr, and their older brother Brady all moved to Evanston when Miracle was 10 years old. When Miracle arrived at Frances Willard Elementary school in Evanston, he was introduced to a completely new world. A world with clean hallways and classrooms, brand new textbooks, and a computer lab full of Macs, back in 2004. At the same time, his old school barely had calculators, and later closed due to asbestos. While the resources were obviously better, this new world presented new challenges as well.
Miracle still remembers his very first day of elementary school, running late to a new place off the CTA bus, and opening the door to his classroom to see a sea of white faces all looking at him. Suddenly it made sense, on a level, why things at this school were so different. Although at ten years old he did not yet understand property taxes and district lines, it was clear to him that these kids always had the resources that were denied to him and his entire school, just a few miles south.
Over the next few years, Miracle and his twin got more accustomed to their new lives in the suburbs and their new schools. They found a community in Evanston with new experiences and opportunities. He met his future wife, Ariel, just a few lockers down and started ballroom dancing with her, a now-lifelong hobby that he would never have imagined for himself before making the move. Upon graduating from high school, Miracle was faced with a choice: what to do next? He first considered joining the armed forces, but it was not the right fit for him, like it was for his twin. After being discharged, he decided to focus on all the injustices he saw at home instead, in and near his community, and to do what he could to make a difference.
He began working for candidates and causes he believed in, like Jan Schakowsky and Bernie Sanders, and volunteering in his community. Mutual aid was an issue close to his heart, as he and his family grew up knowing hunger all too well. Now, some of his favorite memories with his mother come from entire days spent in an industrial-sized kitchen making hundreds of meals to distribute. Miracle and his wife Ariel had their daughter, Adrienne, in 2020. Now, Miracle is running for office for the first time, with over ten years of experience under his belt, to continue the fight to make the world a better place, and to make the United States a better place to live. Miracle is calling for a Universal New Deal policy package, because things are just too hard right now, and we all need a break.
When he and his siblings were growing up, his mother was forced into some unimaginable choices, and it really should not be so hard. No mother should have to choose which of her children get braces, or other more essential medical care. No mother should have to choose between working enough hours to pay the rent, or staying home with a sick kid, and no mother should be forced to pretend she isn’t hungry, just so her kids have enough to eat at dinner. Miracle and his family struggled so much when he was growing up, and unfortunately his story is not a unique one. Today, in 2025, there are still nearly 4 million under-insured children, and over 11 million children in America who are not getting the food that they need daily. Now, Miracle is running for Congress, to stand up for families like his, because he believes that American families deserve better choices, and a government that protects them from the worst outcomes.
We all deserve affordable housing, and access to quality health care, and good jobs that pay the bills, but too many Americans are still living paycheck to paycheck, and working multiple jobs to just barely get by. There are too many Americans who are forced to sacrifice time with their family and community just to stay afloat. A Universal New Deal policy package would eliminate veteran homelessness, and choices between prescriptions and groceries. It would provide opportunities for good paying, union jobs, to people who have been historically excluded, and work to right some of America’s historic wrongs.
The Universal New Deal is not just a policy platform, it’s a promise. Miracle’s campaign is rooted in the belief that the government should work for the many, not the wealthy few. That dignity, justice, and opportunity are not privileges to be earned, but rights to be guaranteed. We know the challenges ahead are steep, but we have met challenges and overcome them in the past because ordinary people stood up and demanded better, often at great personal risk. Now it’s our turn. It’s time to imagine boldly, organize relentlessly, and fight for the future our children deserve. Join us, and let’s build it together.
Lets work together
Government as a safety net for families
As a child who experienced hunger, often, while growing up in the United States, Miracle firmly believes that no child, in fact no person in America, should have to go to bed hungry. Fundamentally, many of us believe this, which is why we have programs, like food stamps, federal housing assistance, and other programs that saved Miracle’s life as a child. However, there is clear evidence that these protections do not go far enough. The data shows that the situation is the same, or worse, for families today. It’s too common a story that food stamps still do not make it to the end of the month. The prices of groceries keep going up, but we are not doing enough to make sure people can afford the amount of food they need to sustain their families.
The Universal New Deal will also include a demand for Universal Healthcare, so that everybody can access the care that they need to thrive. Miracle will fight to guarantee comprehensive coverage for every American, including mental health, dental, vision, hearing, reproductive health, gender-affirming care, long-term services, and prescription drugs, with no out-of-pocket costs. He supports investing in community health infrastructure, rural clinics, mobile units, and culturally competent care rooted in equity and accessibility. Access to quality healthcare is essential to living a good life, and it is essential to the future we want to build together, but it is still just one piece of that puzzle.
Miracle also knows that feeding your children is only part of what it takes to raise a healthy family, and care is another critical piece. Growing up, his mother often had to leave him and his siblings, in the care of relatives, or sometimes alone, just to get to work. Quality, affordable childcare was simply out of reach, and it meant that every decision carried real consequences. Today, that burden is still falling on millions of families, especially women, who are disproportionately pushed out of the workforce due to lack of access to reliable childcare. That’s why Miracle is calling for universal childcare as part of the Universal New Deal, alongside stronger supports like expanded SNAP and WIC benefits that reflect the actual cost of food and nutrition today. These programs must be treated not as handouts, but as essential investments in the future of our communities. Every parent should have the peace of mind that their child is safe, fed, and cared for, regardless of their zip code or income level.
Education Equity as a Public Obligation
Miracle knows firsthand that where you live too often determines what kind of education you get. After moving to Evanston, the difference in resources between his new school and the one he left behind was shocking, but so was the lesson: our public education system is deeply unequal, it’s failing far too many children, and it’s broken. Miracle believes that the quality of a child’s education should never be determined by their neighborhood, income level, or the color of their skin. Yet today, that remains the reality for millions of children in America. Entire generations are being held back. Not because they lack talent or motivation, but because they lack access to the tools and opportunities they need to thrive.
Miracle is calling for a renewed national commitment to education equity, not as a charitable gesture, but as a public obligation. That means fully funding public schools, especially in historically underfunded Black, Brown, and low-income communities, and addressing the disparities created by property tax-based school funding formulas. It means investing in universal pre-K, high-quality after-school programming, school counselors and nurses, and culturally relevant curriculums that affirm and reflect the experiences of all students. It also means expanding access to vocational and trade programs, free higher education, and student debt cancellation, so every young person can choose their own path forward without being punished for dreaming big. Education is the foundation of a fair society. Ensuring every child has access to a quality education is not charity, it is common sense policy, and it is long overdue.
Life should not have to be this hard
Things have gotten really hard lately. Quality childcare is so expensive, and out of reach for so many Americans. Too many people cannot afford access to the health care they need to survive and to thrive, and too many people are working multiple jobs, while making all the right choices, and still just barely getting by. We should not have to choose between paying rent and filling a prescription. We should not need to spend so much on groceries, just to survive. We should not be forced to drown in medical debt, be denied life-saving care, or go bankrupt because we got sick. We should not be working ourselves to exhaustion just to stay afloat, or falling behind because we took time off to care for a loved one. Life shouldn’t be this hard, and it doesn’t have to be.
For too long, the American economy has worked for the wealthy few and left the rest of us behind. While billionaires multiply their fortunes, ordinary people face rising costs and shrinking paychecks. Corporations hoard profits while families cannot afford childcare. CEOs get bonuses while our schools crumble and our infrastructure collapses. These inequalities are not a result of not having enough, but the results of policy. They are the outcome of decades of decisions that have prioritized corporate profits over people’s well-being. Miracle believes that since policy created these problems, that policy can fix them, and work to right some historic wrongs. Together, we can build an economy that works for all of us, not just those already at the top.
