Expected to Open in 2027
- 5526 S Martin Luther King Drive
Nestled in Chicago’s south side, the Chicago Torture Justice Memorial will be added to the Washington Park neighborhood. The Memorial includes a monument with a timeline that tells the story of the racially motivated pattern and practice of torture and the decades long organizing, litigation, and journalism that exposed the truth and fought for accountability and redress, culminating in the passage of historic reparations legislation for Chicago Police torture survivors. Quotes from survivors and family members will be etched into the surrounding pathways, and the monument will be surrounded by lush gardens and meditative seating allowing for rest, reflection, healing, as well outdoor educational programs and events.
The Memorial is the first state sponsored monument in the nation to commemorate law enforcement violence. It is the final piece of the 2015 reparations legislation to be completed.
The Memorial Design + Construction Team
The Memorial design process has included the active input of police torture survivors, family members, and other CTJMF members.
John Gay, JAQ Corp.
Principal Architect
To bring the Memorial to life, Nia Architects' Anthony Akindele became the principal architect in 2024. In 2025, CTJMF began working with architect John Gay of JAQ Corp. to refine and finalize the Memorial design. At the start of his work with the memorial, Gay and his team spoke extensively with survivors to ensure their continued engagement with the memorial design process.
JAQ Corp.
Principal Architect
(MBE)
Prim Lawrence Group Co.
Real Estate Development and Finance Consultant
(MBE/WBE)
Burling Builders
General Contractor
(MBE)
Greenprint Partners
Landscape Design
(W/M/DBE)
Studio Blue
Graphic Design
(WBE)
Mandel Legal Aid Clinic
Legal Counsel
Engage Civil Inc.
Civil Engineer
(MBE)
IMEG
MEP Engineer
Stearn-Joglekar, Ltd
structural Engineer
(MBE)
Illinois Facilities Fund
Lender
Our City + Local Partners
City of Chicago Office of the Mayor
Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events
Department of Planning and Development
Ward 20 Alderwoman Jeanette B. Taylor
Latest Memorial Renderings
Original Memorial Design
In response to CTJM’s 2019 Call for Proposals of memorial designs, artist Patricia Nguyen and architectural designer John Lee produced a model memorial that examined the historical remnants of police torture and offered reparative space for communities to heal. The original memorial design, “Breath, Form, & Freedom,” measured 1600 square feet, with a winding hallway featuring the names and dates of Burge torture survivors. Intended to be constructed in a park setting, the memorial design provided a natural extension into public space, giving its visitors a more natural and fluid experience.
Patricia Nguyen and John Lee
Memorial Co-Designers
As artists, we ask ourselves, “What is our role as cultural producers in the face of continued war, police brutality, mass incarceration, and poverty in our nation’s history?” For us, connecting the history of slavery, international wars, and domestic policies that criminalize poor and working-class communities of color to resilient transnational struggles for liberation was a critical point of departure in defining what this memorial can offer as a public archive and educational platform for all generations. We envisioned a monumental anti-monument, where time does not stand still within the memorial to commemorate a history as past, but a past that is still present and its scale as undeniable. We hope to honor the survivors, both those who have come out and those who are unknown with this memorial and affirm that they are, in the words of Anthony Holmes, “still here.”
The Journey to the Final Promise of Reparations: The Permanent, Public Memorial
2017-19
In 2017, CTJM made the decision to commission selected artists to create a proposal for the permanent, public memorial promised by the Reparations Ordinance. To prepare the artists for the commission, CTJM members organized for almost a year to create a Call for Proposals that included ideas from survivors and family members about what the Memorial should look like and what kind of story it should tell.
As commissions were underway, CTJM hired Hanna Jasper to curate an exhibition of proposals for the Memorial. The exhibition, “Still Here: Torture, Resiliency, and the Art of Memorializing,” opened on March 15, 2019, at Arts + Public Life’s Arts Incubator Gallery. The exhibition, like the many CTJM exhibitions before, served to educate the community about the legacy of police torture in Chicago, to be a platform for survivors to tell their stories, and to imagine what repair and justice could look like. Throughout the exhibition, survivors were docents for the show, and CTJM held screenings, poetry readings, and a community discussion to get input on the Memorial and its meaning for the Southside community. This exhibition was an important tool to select a final memorial proposal and to honor the activists, organizers and families who have worked for decades to bring the torture to light.
2021
In 2021, CTJM members Sarah Ross, Mary Patten, Ivan Arenas, Joey Mogul, Mark Clements, Patricia Nguyen, Daris Jasper, and many others worked together to create a project called “Pain in the Soil: Sites of Resistance to Chicago Police Torture” for Envisioning Justice, an exhibition and activation kit using the arts and humanities to imagine a future without mass incarceration. Through interviews with survivors, their families, and activists, CTJM’s project identified and mapped 15 sites of police torture and resistance. Using video recordings, an interactive map, and written accounts, the project illuminated a landscape of police violence in Chicago over more than 20 years and invited people to visit each site and carry out a specific activity to honor the memory of those whose lives have been permanently impacted by this violence.
2022-23
In the fall of 2022 and prior to the founding of the non-profit CTJM Foundation, CTJM successfully organized to secure $250,000 from the City of Chicago for the Memorial. This was the first concrete funding promise the city made to the project. After this success, CTJM continued to push for full funding in early 2023. CTJM led an extensive campaign to gain public commitments from 2023 aldermanic and mayoral candidates. In total, 64 candidates openly supported the city fully funding the Memorial, including then mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson. As part of his campaign, Johnson publicly committed to funding and constructing the Memorial during his term in office, if elected. The Editorial Board of the Chicago Sun-Times also called on City officials to fully fund the Memorial.
In 2023, CTJM members formed a 501(c)3 organization—the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation (CTJMF)—whose mission is to facilitate the creation and construction of the promised Chicago Torture Justice Memorial. CTJMF served and continues to serve as the fundraising and project management entity for the memorial. CTJM organizer Jen Ash was hired as the Executive Director of this new organization and worked closely with the broader CTJM collective, entities of the city of Chicago, and the design, development, and construction team to bring the Memorial to fruition. The CTJMF Board of Directors and Advisory Board includes survivors and long-time CTJM members.
After eight years of continuous organizing, in June 2023, Mayor Brandon Johnson announced the city of Chicago would award CTJMF a total of $3.05 million to construct the Memorial. $1.8 million of this funding will come from a $6.8 million grant awarded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) called “Citywide Community-initiated Commemorative Projects.” The other $1.25 million will come directly from the City of Chicago’s budget. The Mellon funding awarded to DCASE represents the largest single grant the foundation has awarded to date and will support several projects that uplift other under-acknowledged histories and reckon with outdated histories that celebrate supremacist notions of the past. CTJMF’s memorial will receive the largest amount of funding from this grant out of all the projects selected as recipients.
In the spring of 2023, CTJMF members and survivors Anthony Holmes, Gregory Banks, and Mark Clements were featured in a short promotional film about the Chicago Torture Justice Memorial. The film was produced and directed by Raphael Nash, an independent film producer, director, and adjunct professor at DePaul University. A special thank you to Essence McDowell who provided the voiceover for the project and to the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) who funded the project.
Before the COVID 19 pandemic began, CTJM had developed plans for an oral history project to collect the life stories of survivors, family members, and organizers associated with the campaign for reparations for Burge torture survivors. In 2023, CTJMF was able to pick up where we left off and began interviewing individuals in the spring. A total of 33 people, mostly survivors, have been interviewed since then. With plans to make the material public eventually, the oral histories will support the work of the Memorial and the Reparations Won curriculum taught to 8th and 10th graders in Chicago Public Schools, which was also an element of the reparations legislation.
On May 6, 2023, in celebration of the 8th anniversary of the passage of the reparations legislation, CTJM hosted a bus tour of the 20th ward that focused on several historic sites featured in Mariame Kaba and Essence McDowell’s publication, Lifting as They Climbed. Memorial co-designer Patricia Nguyen created a beautiful tour map complete with all the historical stops including the site proposed for the memorial at the intersection of 55th Place and King Drive. The tour was led by author and CTJM supporter Essence McDowell and CTJMF Executive Director Jen Ash.
In June, CTJMF held its first design retreat virtually to further develop the schematic design of the memorial. Survivors and family members gave extensive feedback on the design and content of the Memorial and received stipends for their time and labor. CTJMF held two additional design retreats in November 2023 and March 2024—one hosted at Church of the Good Shepherd in Washington Park and the other at Walls Turned Sideways in East Garfield Park.
On August 10, 2023, CTJMF hosted a party to celebrate recent wins, including the funding announcement from the city, and update supporters on where we were in the process of memorial development. Numerous survivors, family members, CTJM organizers, and supporters from various organizations came together to share in a moment of collective joy.
On November 8, 2023, CTJMF and the CTJC hosted a fundraising gala for the first time. This year’s theme was, “It’s A New Day: The Struggle Continues.” This event was a huge success thanks to our long-time supporters who continue to pour love and material resources into the work of both organizations. CTJMF and the CTJC grossed over $66,000 in ticket sales and sponsorships. We would especially like to thank donor Laurence Ralph, whose short animated film The Torture Letters was screened at the start of the night, and supporters Sheila Bedi, Carla Mayer, and Emily Stephenson who gave generous donations to offset event expenses. Special honorees that night included Teresa Prim of Prim Lawrence Group, Eric Williams of The Silver Room and Bronzeville Winery, Frank Chapman of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist Political Repression (CAARPR), the MAMAS Collective, and all mothers/caretakers of the movement including: Anthanette Marshbanks, April Ward Arewa Karen Winters, Armanda Shackelford, Bertha Escamilla, Christina Borizov, Denice Bronis, Denise Spencer, Dorothy Holmes, Esther Hernandez, Frank Ornelas, Regina Russell, Rosemary Cade, Mary L. Johnson, and Carolyn Johnson.
2024-Present
The first big accomplishment of 2024 came in January and February when CTJMF co-hosted community engagement meetings with the 20th Ward Aldermanic Office of Alderwoman Jeanette Taylor. CTJMF partnered with the Chicago Torture Justice Center, Southsiders Organized for Unity and Liberation, and GoodKids MadCity to knock on doors and gain support for the memorial project in Washington Park, a neighborhood where many of the torture survivors grew up or visited prior to their interrogations and incarceration. Residents and supporters turned out to the meetings to learn about the project’s design, purpose, and predicted impact. Residents then had the opportunity to vote on whether they wanted the memorial project to exist in their neighborhood. Ultimately, Washington Park residents voted in favor of having the memorial built at 55th Place and King Drive.
Since then, CTJMF has focused on continuing our commitment to honoring the legacy of the struggle for reparations and building community to work toward a more just future. We’ve held events and fundraisers with community partners like our neighbors at the Washington Park Advisory Council, the University of Chicago’s Arts + Public Life, Walls Turned Sideways, the Chicago Torture Justice Center, and Haymarket Books. We also started our Social Justice Pollinators Hive program for recurring donors, which not only assures we are able to sustain the work we do but allows us to develop deeper relationships with, and give back to, our supporters.
We’ve also continued with the planning and development of the permanent public memorial in partnership with architect John Gay and his team at JAQ Corp., as well as Alderwoman Jeanette Taylor and other partners at the City. In December of 2023, the City Council Committee on Housing and Real Estate voted to approve the land transfer needed for the construction of the memorial. A week later, with survivors, organizers, and supporters in the crowd, the full City Council voted to approve the transfer.
Construction of the memorial is slated to begin in 2026, but CTJMF’s work will not end then. The future of the Chicago Torture Justice Memorial is grounded in education, public art and arts education, and reaching community of all ages through our array of programming initiatives. Some of these are already in the works: our oral history program has been collecting the stories of survivors over the last two years; the Reparations Won curriculum taught in CPS schools has set the stage for future class field trips; and survivors and staff have begun building connections in the community through our programming partnerships. We also intend to utilize the expansive pollinator and native plant gardens on-site and the open amphitheater space to host public programming. A cultural workforce development program will educate survivors of police violence in various fields of work.
Public programming at the memorial will be open to all ages. As an outdoor site, we expect our busy season for programming to be between Memorial Day and Labor Day—or as long as weather permits. Regular programming will combine on-site art-making, nature-based education in our pollinator garden, and community safety workshops for everyone from school age youth to senior citizens. We also anticipate forging new and stronger relationships with other community organizations with programs emphasizing intergenerational knowledge and skill-sharing.
Key Design Elements
As part of the design process, interviews were conducted in person by members of CTJM, including survivors, and through the mail for survivors still incarcerated. Questions focused on Place, Material, Images, Memory, and Themes. These interviews were one part of the continued involvement of survivors and family members in the design process over the years.
Known Burge Survivors
Phillip Adkins
Tony Anderson
James Andrews
Dwight Anthony
Michael Arbuckle
Gregory Banks
David Bates
Stephen Bell
Rodney Benson
Robert Billingsley
William Bracey
Cortez Brown
Roy Brown
Franklin Burchette
Eric Caine
Darrell Cannon
Stephen Cavanero
Damoni Clemon
Imari Clemon
Jesse Clemon
Darrell Cleveland
James Cody
Michael Coleman
Howard Collins
Thomas Craft
Jevon Delony
Maurice Delony
Mearon Diggins
David Faultneroy
Raymond Golden
Sylvester Green
Ollie Hammonds
Terry Harris
Clarence Hill
Leonard Hinton
Madison Hobley
Anthony Holmes
Lee Holmes
Lonza Holmes
Terrence Houston
Jeffrey Howard
Stanley Howard
Edward James
Grayland Johnson
Keith Eric Johnson
Michael Johnson
Walter Johnson
Lavert Jones
Melvin Jones
Leonard Kidd
Derrick King
Ronald Kitchen
James Lewis
Jerry Mahaffey
Reginald Mahaffey
Rodney Mastin
Andrew Maxwell
Paul Mike
Larry Milan
Doris Miller
Alex Moore
Shaded Mumin
Leroy Orange
Diyez Owen
Aaron Patterson
Michael Peterson
Alphonso Pinex
Willie Porch
Lawrence Poree
George Powell
Marvin Reeves
Travis Richardson
LC Riley
Virgil Robinson
TyShaun Ross
Leroy Sanford
Alonzo Smith
Eric Smith
Ivan Smith
Lindsey Smith
Robert Smith
Jerry Thompson
Timothy Thompson
Tony Thompson
Michael Tillman
Donald Torrence
Donnell Traylor
Clarence Trotter
Johnny Walker
Keith Walker
Philip Walker
Clinton Welton
Demond Weston
Donald White
Marcus Wiggins
Andre Wilk
Anthony Williams
Bobby Williams
Terry Williams
Andrew Wilson
Eric Wilson
Jackie Wilson
Jesse Winston
Ronald Wise
Stanley Wrice
The Pollinator Garden
Surrounding the Memorial structure, landscaped gardens with native and pollinator-friendly plants will provide spaces for quiet reflection, and an outdoor amphitheater will host educational programming, survivor-led tours, public art exhibitions, and special events for our Social Justice Pollinators. Each plant in the garden has been chosen for its harmony with the land and its associations with healing, justice, and community.
Drawings and research by Elizabeth Rose Kushner-Stubbs and Tzitlalli Cienfuegos Gonzalez.
Black Eyed-Susan
Rudbeckia Hirta
A meaningful flower for people who speak their truth to fight for justice. The roots contain a natural diuretic and can be use to make a tea to help lower blood pressure
Blue Wood Aster
Symphyotrichum Cordifolium
Represents, resilience patience, perseverance, and wisdom. The stems, leaves, and flowers are edible both raw and cooked.
Wild Hyacinth
Camassia Scilloides
Represents inner growth, rebirth, transition, and sincere love as well as lasting memory.
Purple Hyssop
Agastache Foeniculum
This flower represents forgiveness, hope, cleansing, purification, and spiritual as well as divine protection.
Ohio Spiderwort
Tradescantia Ohiensis
Associated with tranquility, trust, and transient happiness. A laxative tea can be made from the roots to soothe an upset stomach.
Wild Geranium
Geranium Maculatum
The Wild Geranium is known to represent harmony, healing, and victory after war. Gifting someone a geranium flower is a way to wish them emotional wellness.
Washington Park
The land that is now called Washington Park is part of the unceded homelands of the Three Fires Council—the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Bodéwadmi (Potawatomi) Nations—and was seized and claimed by the United States in 1795 after the Northwest Indian War. This land has also been home to, and stewarded by, many other Indigenous Peoples, including the Kaskaskia, Kiikaapoi, Peoria, Myaamia, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, and Sac and Fox.
By the end of the 19th century, the area was a majority-white, mixed-class neighborhood but became a predominately-Black community during the first Great Migration and “white flight” of the early 20th century. These demographic changes led to civic disinvestment in the area. The neighborhood became home to a number of neglected public housing structures, including some of the Robert Taylor Homes, the largest public housing development in the US at the time. Washington Park sits between Chicago Police Areas 2 and 3, where Jon Burge was assigned during his 22-year tenure in the department. Systemic neglect and over-policing led to a steep population decline in the late 20th century and lasting, negative impacts on the community today.
Despite this history, Washington Park is also a historic and developing center of Black arts and culture. The park has been home to the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center since 1973 and a host of the Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic since its inception in 1929. The Chicago Torture Justice Memorial will join organizations like the Washington Park Advisory Council, the Washington Park Residents’ Advocacy Council, UChicago’s Arts + Public Life (including the Arts Lawn, Arts Block, and Arts Incubator), the Sweet Water Foundation, the Washington Park Fieldhouse, and the Obama Presidential Center in extending needed access to critical historical education, public art and arts education, and intergenerational community engagement.
For more on the history of Washington Park, see the research done by our neighbors at Arts + Public Life.
| Factor | Washington Park | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
|
Black Population |
92.5% |
27.5% |
|
Per Capita Income |
$22,463 |
$50,086
|
|
Poverty Rate |
41.07% |
19.83% |
|
Unemployment Rate |
16.98% |
8%
|
|
Seniors Living Alone |
63.34% |
34.92% |
|
Adult Loneliness Rate |
37.8% |
31.8% |
|
Area Deprivation Index |
67.63% |
47.49% |
|
Arts Education Access and Quality Rate |
9.8% |
44.6% |
|
Social Vulnerability Index |
83.95% |
61.46% |
|
Reliable Internet Access Rate |
70.5% |
90.5% |
Site Selection
In determining the location for the Memorial, several factors were take into consideration.