Chicago Torture Justice Center

Whatever you are feeling is okay.

This is a toolkit with practices that we offered in 2020, and we want to offer it again today.

We know that regardless of who sits in office, we will continue working towards our collective liberation. And we must take the time to care for ourselves and others as we prepare for all the work ahead of us.

Access the toolkit here: https://issuu.com/chicagotorturejustice/docs/election_20day_20plan_20_3_

Come out to our next court support training! This session will cover common legal terms and what they actually mean. The legal system is often confusing and murky--intentionally so! Even if you've come to a court support training in the past, we encourage you to attend this session.

Monday, Nov. 4th
4-5:30pm
6337 S. Woodlawn

Register here: bit.ly/courtsupport-ctjc

Organizer Mark Clements spoke with WTTW last week about the UN report on racialized police violence.

Despite the release of the UN report earlier this year, we are still waiting for justice for torture survivors who remain in prison.

United Nations Calls Out ‘Racialized Police Violence’ in Chicago United Nations human rights investigators said in a statement: “These heinous alleged human rights violations appear to a significant extent to be rooted in systemic racism and have disproportionately affected people of African and Latin American descent.”

It's spooky season, and there's nothing spookier than a landlord who never gets anything done.

But you have rights as a renter!! Join us and Uptown People's Law Center for a training on how to write a 14-day demand letter to your landlord. This training is for any renter in the Chicago area.

Wednesday, October 30
5-6:30pm
6337 S. Woodlawn Ave.
Chicago, 60637

Illinois legislators are attempting to restrict mail going into Illinois Department of Corrections!

Mail correspondence is the the primary way we keep in contact with our incarcerated community members. Most importantly, physical mail is one of the few connections to the outside world that incarcerated people have.

Join us in taking action now!

Did you know that failure to comply with the IL Murder Registry is considered a class 3 felony, even though individuals on the registry have already completed their sentences?

The IL Murder Registry keeps our communities in a cycle of perpetual punishment. If you or a loved one is on the registry, or may be made to register upon their release, we encourage you to attend this training.

Monday, October 21
4:30-6pm
6337 S Woodlawn, Chicago IL 60637

Send RSVPs to Naji Ublies [email protected]

October 10th is World Day Against the Death Penalty. Just last month, Marcellus Khaliifah Williams was killed by the state of Missouri, despite nationwide calls for his pardon. Everyday, we lose someone to state violence.

Stanley Howard is a founder of the Death Row 10 that fought and succeeded to abolish the death penalty in Illinois. We are overjoyed that Stanley came home in 2023 after 39 long years. While incarcerated, Stanley was a fierce advocate for torture survivors. Now that he's home, he continues fighting for justice for all survivors.

We're bringing back our Mutual Aid Mondays, where we share community-led fundraisers and other opportunities for people to support survivors ❤

This month, we are highlighting two fundraisers for mothers & families who have lost loved ones to state violence:

1. Ronald "RonnieMan" Johnson was killed by Chicago police 10 years ago on October 12, 2014. His mother Dorothy Holmes started a foundation in his honor, The Ronald Johnson III Memorial Foundation. RJMF organizes annual school supply and holiday toy drives for families in Washington Park and surrounding neighborhoods. This year, they will be commemorating RonnieMan's 10th Angel Year, and are seeking community support to make it happen.

Help Dorothy and RJMF cover their whole BINGO card! Donations are accepted through Paypal (@/RonnieMan1)

2. FLOYD is throwing a skate fundraiser on October 20th at the MLK Skating Rink. Proceeds from will go towards supporting three mothers who lost their children to state violence.

Admission or donations are accepted through Zelle ([email protected]). Tickets will be sent via text.

There is no court support training for the month of October!

The next training is scheduled for Monday, November 4th from 4-5:30pm

If you've been to one of our court support trainings before, invite a friend! Trainings are open to all old and new court support volunteers.

Register here: https://bit.ly/courtsupport-ctjc

October 2nd is International Wrongful Conviction Day.

Torture survivors live the reality of wrongful convictions, spending decades behind bars because their conviction was defined by a coerced confession.

Chicago is known as the False Confession Capital. According to The National Registry of Exonerations, Illinois' false confession rate is 3x higher than the national average, with 1 in 4 of them coming from Cook County.

At the same time we celebrate these exonerations, we are grieved and enraged at a system that routinely puts innocent people behind bars. We hope to see more and more exonerations of our folks who have been wrongfully incarcerated as we work to dismantle harmful systems.

This year marks 10 years since Ronald Johnson was killed by Chicago police.

Dorothy Holmes has been a force for justice all these years, advocating for justice for her son along with other mothers who face what no mother should.

Please consider making a donation to the Ronald Johnson III Memorial Foundation to help gather other survivors and grieving families so they can remember their lost loved ones together.

To donate:
Zelle: [email protected]
Check: Make payable to Ronald Johnson III Memorial Foundation, addressed to RJMF, 2050 W Farwell Ave, Unit 1, Chicago IL 60645

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-promise-and-peril-of-the-torture-inquiry-relief-commission-tirc-tickets-1027361565097Join us at the Center for a panel about the Torture Inquiry Relief Commission (TIRC) on Thursday, October 10th.

Learn about the TIRC and how torture survivors' daily lives are impacted by decisions made by the TIRC.

Register for the event:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-promise-and-peril-of-the-torture-inquiry-relief-commission-tirc-tickets-1027361565097

Panelists:
Stanley Howard, Uptown People's Law Center
Debra Loevy, The Exoneration Project
Kim D. Ricardo, UIC Law

Co-moderators:
Mark Clements, Chicago Torture Justice Center
Alice Kim, Beyond Prisons/Center for the Study of Race, Politics & Culture

Thursday, Oct 10, 2024, 6-8pm
Chicago Torture Justice Center
6337 S. Woodlawn, Chicago

Food provided.

Pack the court in support of our comrade and community member Abdul-Malik Muhammad!

🗓 Wednesday, October 2nd
🕐 1pm
📍 2600 S. California Ave. (Cook County Courthouse)
Room 306

When we grieve, we heal.

We are mourning the state-sanctioned murder of Marcellus Williams, who was murdered by a system of violent bureaucracy. We say the names of Sonya Massey, Michael Broadway, Rekia Boyd, Javion Magee, Ronald Johnson, Archie Lee Chambers Jr., Pierre Loury, and so many more who we have lost to the violence of white supremacy. We grieve all those displaced and murdered by U.S.-funded and manufactured machines of war across Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, the Congo, and many more. We grieve the torture survivors who have passed on, the ones who continue the fight with us, and the ones who remain behind prison walls.

There is heaviness, rage, and grief all around us.

The CTJC team took some time today to sit with our grief. With guidance from CTJC’s art therapist, we transferred the heaviness onto paper, using colors and shapes and form to contain our grief.

We encourage you to do the same ❤️ And to ground yourself in the knowledge that our collective grief is powerful

Next week! We're offering a Know Your Rights training at the Center for those impacted by the IL Murder Registry on Thursday, September 26th at 4:30PM. Please send questions and RSVP's to [email protected].

Learn more about the Registry: chicagotorturejustice.org/murderregistry

Court support trainings will now be held on every second Monday of the month.

Join us for the next training session on Monday, September 9th, 4-5:30pm at the Center. Get involved in creating a strong network of volunteers who can stand in solidarity with survivors as they navigate the legal system.

All new and experienced court support volunteers are welcome to attend the training. No previous court support experience is necessary.

bit.ly/courtsupport-ctjc

With the DNC in Chicago this week, there is increased police and military presence across the city.

We encourage you to get familiar with your rights if you are arrested.

Remember, you are entitled to 3 CALLS IN 3 HOURS. You do not have to tell the police anything without an attorney present, and police are prohibited from monitoring, eavesdropping, and recording any calls with your attorney.

For legal help, save these numbers:
First Defense Legal Aid
1-800-LAW-REP4
(1-800-529-7374)

Lawyers Guild of Chicago
872-4NLG-CHI
(872-465-4244)

We are sharing out this important information from our friends at the National Lawyers Guild Chicago which contains tips to keep you safe if you are protesting this week.

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Legal Observers monitor police activity at demonstrations. With advance notice, we can cover most actions.

NLG attorneys can answer questions you may have related to demonstrations your planning. Send us an email to schedule an action consult.

Before you take the streets, make sure you memorize our legal support hotline number! 872-4NLG-CHI

Our friends at Chicago Action Medical are organizing crews of streets medics to help us keep other safe.

Email Chicago Action Medical before your action to request medics [email protected]

If you are hitting the streets this week, please be safe, look out for one another, and know that you have rights!

Rehearse the 3 magic phrases with your comrades, friends, and community members:

- Am I free to go?

- I will not talk. I want my lawyer.

- I do not consent to any searches

We are so proud and honored to be an incubator for the Mud Theatre Project!

Mud Theatre emerged from a group of artists inside Dixon Correctional Center that started some of the first ever peer-led arts programming inside IDOC. Most of the founding members are now home. Since coming home, they've hit the ground running to launch the Mud Theatre Project. Mud Theatre continues the work that the group started while in prison, intersecting art, justice, and healing for those impacted by the carceral system.

https://chicagoreader.com/arts-culture/theater/theater-preview/mud-theatre-project-brian-beals/

'We want to inform the everyday public of what we actually go through' - Chicago Reader Created at Dixon Creational Center, Mud Theatre Project continues giving voice to those who have been incarcerated on the outside of prison.

Our community and comrades inside Stateville have protested the conditions inside the prison for decades. With the recent announcement of its closure, conditions have only worsened.

Abdul-Malik Muhammad shared with us his own experience of living in Stateville.

"Prison is a traumatic experience, but it can be made worse by poor conditions like the ones that exist here at Stateville. The illnesses that people experience at Stateville are very traumatic to witness. There are prisoners being pushed to school buildings in wheelchairs and on crutches with colostomy bags on."

Follow Malik: Free Abdul-Malik Muhammad
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Black August commemorates the prisoner-led liberation movement that originated in the 1970s in California prisons. We remember the lives of freedom fighters and political prisoners like George Jackson who continue to inspire incarcerated people and prison abolitionists across the country.

‘Society doesn't get to see this’ — Chicago Torture Justice Center Written by Malik Abdul Muhammad, a member of the CTJC community and recent graduate from Northwestern Prison Education Project currently incarcerated in Stateville. THE CLOSURE OF STATEVILLE Stateville is a notorious prison that contains the most infamous untold stories, now it’s one of the mos

Black August commemorates the 1970s liberation movement that originated in California prisons, led by freedom fighters like George Jackson. It offers us a time to honor the lives and struggle of Black political prisoners, freedom fighters, and survivors of state & carceral violence.

'Prisoners First' was shared with us by a recently returned community member. The call to action circulated throughout the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) in the 90s, and inspired incarcerated people to organize for better prison conditions.

"Prisoners must understand that no one outside ourselves are going to fix our situation but us. Solving our problems will have to come from our own hands. We are only as strong as our voice allow us to be!"

🚨🚨🚨 Our next court support training: Thursday, August 8th 🚨🚨🚨

Join us in building a network of support for our system-impacted community. This training is free and open to all new volunteers. No previous experience is necessary.

There are weekly court dates to attend, and we need as many people as we can!

Register for the training here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfarvCKqgMRVPNYtLYjci3q9WM7tyQmY3_5bBhuARxpA9Grqw/viewform

We are outraged by the murder of Sonya Massey by Sangamon County police. Black women deserve safety, period. Our communities deserve safety, period. We do not need to view any video footage to prove, yet again, what we have always known: that police do not and cannot keep us safe.

Whatever you may be feeling right now, whether that is anger, sadness, numbness, confusion, etc., is more than okay. You are not alone in your grief and your outrage. Remember that our collective grief is powerful, and that your anger is meaningful. With every unconscionable loss, we are more determined and resolute in our commitment to create a world free from police and state violence.

These are excerpts from our 'Grief is Healing' zine, which is available for free on our website. We invite you to use and share this a resource as you navigate and process feelings of grief.

https://www.chicagotorturejustice.org/zines-graphics



This digital collage of Sonya Massey was made by Jennifer White-Johnson

Our community mourns the sudden loss of Eric Caine. Eric was a torture survivor who was active with the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation, and he found joy in working to ensure that survivors will forever be remembered.

Please consider a donation to help Eric's family with costly funeral expenses: https://giving.classy.org/campaign/601888/donate