Rethinking and Reinvesting in Justice – Thank You for Supporting October 2020 Virtual Forum Series!
Every October, the Collaboration for Justice of Chicago Appleseed & Chicago Council of Lawyers gathers for a luncheon to highlight the important systemic reform work our staff, interns, allies, and pro bono partners have done over the year.
Because this year we couldn’t gather in person, we hosted a virtual forum series that terrifically highlighted the impact and direction of our justice reform efforts. If you weren’t able to tune in this October, you can view full-length videos of each panel below or visit www.CollaborationForJustice.org to learn a little more about the work your support propels.
October 9 – Vision for Collaborative Justice Reinvestment
The first of three forums was our Vision for Collaborative Justice Reinvestment, moderated by Maya Dukmasova of the Chicago Reader and featuring Ben Ruddell (ACLU-IL), Annie McGowan (Civic Federation), Mary Pattillo, PhD (Northwestern University), Olivia Farrell (The Network), and co-chair of our Criminal Justice Advisory Committee, Alexandra Block (Miller Shakman Levine & Feldman).
The forum included – among other things – a conversation about fines and fees and where they go within the court systems in Cook County and Illinois as a whole. Excessive legal system fees and fines that negatively impact Black, Brown, and lower-income people the most. These system of financial punishment perpetuate cycles of poverty and make it difficult to disengage with the court system.
Instead of spending large sums of money to collect just nickels and dimes of what is “owed” by litigants, our courts should invest those resources, energy, and time into restorative programs. Court systems do provide diversion programs for individuals; however, they are still tied to the court systems which has an element of punishment attached to it. In order to properly help individuals experiencing poverty, addiction, mental health illness, etc. it is crucial to reinvest funds to communities and services that will provide community members with the resources needed to prevent individuals from interacting with the court systems in the first place.
October 16 – Improving the Bench: Electing a High-Quality, Diverse Judiciary
The second forum of our October Virtual Series, Improving the Bench: Importance of Judicial Quality & Diversity, was a conversation around how our communities are engaging voters to vote for judges that will improve the quality of justice in Cook County & Illinois. Mari Cohen of Jewish Currents & South Side Weekly moderated the conversation, which included: Stevie Valles and Jen Dean (Chicago Votes), Hon. Travis Richardson (former Cook County Judge), Rick Tulsky (Injustice Watch), and Malcolm Rich and Elizabeth Monkus of Chicago Appleseed and the Chicago Council of Lawyers.
The conversation centered around the need for a more diverse bench in Cook County – not just in regard to race, ethnicity, sexuality, or gender, but including also individuals of diverse backgrounds, who have unique life experiences. In order to improve the bench, there needs to be more transparency on the histories and practices of individual judges, so that the public is informed about what values they are supporting when they vote.
October 23 – Reshaping Criminal “Justice” in Cook County & Illinois
Our final forum, Reshaping Criminal “Justice” in Cook County & Illinois, featured Ali Abid (Cook County Justice Advisory Council), Amy Campanelli (Cook County Public Defender), Jobi Cates (Executive Director & Founder, Restore Justice) Sharone Mitchell, Jr. (Director, Illinois Justice Project & Chicago Appleseed Board Member), Jonathan Pilsner (Office of the State Appellate Defender & Co-Chair of our Criminal Justice Advisory Committee, Randolph Stone (retired, Mandel Legal Aid Clinic at University of Chicago Law School), Alexa Van Brundt (MacArthur Justice Center Clinic at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law), and was moderated by Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, PhD (Brown University).
Allies of Chicago Appleseed and the Chicago Council of Lawyers gathered to discuss the state of criminal “justice” in Cook County and Illinois and our collective initiatives to improve it. The conversation centered around several issues championed by Chicago Appleseed, the Council, and participants on the call, including: ending money bond in Illinois; providing stationhouse representation to every person arrested in Cook County; investing in non-punitive, restorative programs over punishment; and more.
While these panels only scratched the surface of what the Collaboration for Justice accomplishes, we hope you, too, will make a contribution to support our work. Click here to donate.
Our Collaboration for Justice would like to sincerely thank all of the panelists, moderators, and sponsors who made our October 2020 Virtual Forum Series a success.
ADVOCATE SPONSORS $5,000
Baker McKenzie – Harrison & Held, LLP – The Sidley Austin Foundation
PRO BONO PARTNERS SPONSORS $2,500
Anonymous – Chapman & Cutler LLP – DLA Piper – Barry Fields – Aviva Futorian – Goldberg Kohn – Kirkland & Ellis – Latham & Watkins – Miller, Shakman, Levine, & Feldman – Miner, Barnhill, & Galland, P.C. – Schiff Hardin – Skadden – PwC – Kathryn L. Welter and Richard Bieterman III
ALLY SPONSORS $1,500
Matt Daniels – Sonya Naar – Rachel Niewoehner
FRIEND SPONSORS $500
Alexandra Block – BMO Harris Bank – John Jacobs – Nicole Jakubowski – Ann MacDonald – Judd Miner – Johnathan Pilsner and Sarah Siderius – Malcolm Rich – Nicholas Siciliano