Illinois Humanities Awards $147,000 in Envisioning Justice Grants to 19 Organizations and Individuals

• Chicago Torture Justice Center (Chicago), to support a Resilience Play Reading of theatrical works by formerly incarcerated writers. ($10,000) 
• Chicago Books to Women in Prison (Chicago; Statewide), to support “Prism/Prison,” a publication of art and writing created by artists inside and outside the carceral system. ($10,000) 
• ConTextos (Chicago), to support their community hub “2240” for storytelling, healing, and creativity. ($10,000) 
• Stomping Grounds Literary Arts Initiative (Chicago), to expand their core arts and humanities programming in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. ($10,000) 
• Free Root Operation (Chicago), to support the BLOOM Cohort, who address the root causes of poverty-induced gun violence. ($10,000) 
• Storycatchers Theatre (Chicago), to support Changing Voices, a post-release youth development and transitional program. ($10,000) 
• Recipe for Change (Chicago), to support music and art education workshops for detainees inside Cook County Jail. ($10,000) 
• Galesburg Public Library (Galesburg), to support a month-long community reading series on Correction: Parole, Prison, and the Possibility of Change. ($7,500) 
• Dominican University (River Forest), to support the Free ‘Em All Radio Archive speaker series and podcast. ($10,000) 
• Beyond the Walls: The Movement (Carbondale), to support a Community Mural Event at the Healing SoIL [Southern Illinois] Farm. ($5,000) 
• Mud Theatre Project (Chicago), to host playwriting workshops with system-impacted individuals. ($5,000) 
• Chicago 400 Alliance (Chicago), to support the creation of a media archive documenting the impact of registry laws. ($10,000) 

Individuals

• Ruth L. Poor (Woodridge), to produce an art showcase for students at Stateville Prison. ($4,500) 
• Dan Protess (Evanston), to complete an hour-long documentary, In Their Hands, the story of Ronnie Carrasquillo. ($5,000) 
• Claire Crawford, Geneseo Public Library District (Geneseo), to feature speakers on successful re-entry. ($5,000) 
• Leanne Trapedo Sims, Knox College (Galesburg), for continued support for the Knox College-Henry Hill Prison Education Program. ($5,000) 
• Melissa Amelia Pavlik (Chicago), to support work by writers serving long-term sentences in Illinois. ($5,000) 
• Sonja Henderson, Mothers Healing Circle (Chicago), to support the Healing House initiative, providing restorative workshops to Englewood women. ($5,000)