CHICAGO TORTURE JUSTICE CENTER RECOGNIZES FIVE YEARS

Chicago Torture Justice activists continue to fight for survivors of torture and incarcerated people during COVID-19. Photo Courtesy of EZ Powers Photograph
Chicago Torture Justice activists continue to fight for survivors of torture and incarcerated people during COVID-19. Photo Courtesy of EZ Powers Photograph

Chicago Torture Justice Center recognizes five years

BY TIA CAROL JONES

The Chicago Torture Justice Center was born out of the city of Chicago’s 2015 “Reparations for Burge Torture Victims” Ordinance, which sought to compensate those with a credible claim of torture or physical abuse by John Burge or officers under his command at Area 2 or Area 3 Police Headquarters between May 1, 1972 and Nov. 30, 1991.

The center opened in 2017 as part of the ordinance’s provision to address the needs of survivors, their families and community members.

To recognize the five-year anniversary of the ordinance’s passing, Chicago Torture Justice Center hosted a fundraiser.

Activists from the Torture Justice community say the work continues and COVID-19 has shed light on further injustices experienced by those who are incarcerated.

Aislinn Pulley is the co-executive director at Chicago Torture Justice Center. “There are still over 100 incarcerated torture survivors.

And so, even pre-COVID-[19], we were working on freeing them,” Pulley said. “Now, with the pandemic, there has been [an] increased urgency to free them, along with the number of other incarcerated people who are medically vulnerable, elderly and who have less than a year on their sentences.”

Pulley said the activists have been fighting for the release of people who are incarcerated because there is no way to be socially distant in jails. And, there have been death in prisons like Cook County Jail and Statesville Prison. Pulley said this has led to fear among the incarcerated population, describing it as a “horror story.”

“There’s been numerous reports we’ve received directly from people incarcerated, through family members reaching out, people are really concerned that people are going to die,” she said.

Pulley said other than mass release, there should be bond for those who are awaiting trial and they should be released.

“There’s overwhelming evidence that shows the majority of people who are released on I-Bonds show up for court,” she said.

Pulley said that those who are incarcerated should also be given personal protective equipment. And, they should have access to better health care and resources during this pandemic.

“Prisons and detention centers are deplorable in terms of health care,” she said. “All hospitals should be accepting people who are detained. They shouldn’t be relegated to only a certain, specific ones, it should be any hospital that has the capacity, should be opening its doors and should be supported with the resources it needs in order to provide the care that people need.”

Pulley said the needs of those who are incarcerated mirror the needs of those who are not incarcerated, and that includes providing both populations with access to better health care and personal protection gear. She said there also needs to be more hospital beds, mass testing, on the outside and on the inside, as well as massive funding.

“We need massive funding in order to expand our public health system, which has been defunded over the last 40 years,” she

said. “So, the same demands that we have for the outside, we have for the inside, as well.”

For more information about the Chicago Torture Justice Center, visit www.ChicagoTortureJustice. org.

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