Addressing Inequality and Class through Research Informed Policy: Lessons from Illinois
This session offers a rare opportunity to explore the growing connection between academic research and state-level policymaking in Illinois. Panelists who have been deeply involved in building this nexus will discuss how academic research informs policies (and vice versa) in Illinois, examining the common channels of interaction between these two spheres. By bringing together experts from both academia and government, this session aims to shed light on the evolving landscape of evidence-based policymaking designed to address inequality, labor, class, and environmental issues in Illinois and gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities in translating research into actionable policy, as well as the potential impact of this collaboration on addressing pressing issues facing the state.
(Session Organizer and Presider) Eunmi Mun, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; (Panelists) Richard Benton, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Alison Dickson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Ciquoiah Broxton, City of Chicago; Jason Keller, Illinois Department of Labor; Liz Fisher, University of Illinois at Chicago; Christina Rose Welter, University of Illinois at Chicago
Chicago: A City of Refuge
Like many urban cities past and present, people have come to Chicago seeking refuge, services and community with people like themselves. Today, Chicago continues to be a place where it is legal to seek abortion services, has a large LGBTQ community and is home to many immigrant and culturally diverse communities. This session highlights the many ways in which communities have sought and continue to see refuge in Chicago and the many organizations who work to accomplish this.
(Session Organizer and Presider) Anne Figert, Loyola University Chicago; (Panelists) Representative from the Chicago Abortion Fund; Brian Johnson, Equality Illinois; Representative from the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Chicago as the Vanguard: Future Dreaming
As the birthplace of numerous social movements and a hub for social innovation, Chicago stands as a testament to the dynamic interplay between community activism and policy reform. This panel discussion invites esteemed scholars and activists to explore local historian Shermann Dilla Thomas’ (aka 6figga_dilla) assertion that “everything dope about America comes from Chicago.” Examining contemporary efforts for racial justice and equity, alongside the city’s unique capacity to galvanize diverse communities around shared goals, panelists will highlight Chicago’s role as a catalyst for change not only within its borders but across the nation. Through interdisciplinary perspectives, panelists will discuss the implications of Chicago activism on national debates and future dreaming surrounding educational policy, social equity, urban redevelopment, and civic engagement. This conversation aims to illuminate the fundamental lessons learned from Chicago’s struggles and triumphs, emphasizing the city’s enduring legacy as a model for social transformation.
(Session Organizer and Presider) Teresa Irene Gonzales, Loyola University Chicago; (Panelists) Preston Kendall, Cristo Rey St. Martin College Prep; Luis Gutierrez, Latinos Progresando; Dayo Harris, ITAV Schools; Glenance Green, Black Researchers Collective
Confronting Histories of Racial Harm in Chicago and Illinois
Nationally, there are increasing conversations about reparations for long histories of racial harm. In the last decade, there have been multiple efforts across Chicago and Illinois to undertake reparations including work to document the history and extent of harm, to address and repair harm done, and to make payments to harmed communities and individuals. These efforts have ranged widely including organizing in Chicago on behalf of the Burge Torture Survivors, in Evanston to address long histories of discrimination in housing, Arts/activism related efforts to address the history and present harm of land sale contracts in the Englewood neighborhood in Chicago, and the State of Illinois’ legislative creation of new African Descendants Citizens Reparations Committee. This panel will examine what we can learn from these efforts – some initiated by government entities and some initiated by community organizers, and organizations making demands on behalf of communities that have been harmed.
(Session Organizers) Amanda Lewis, University of Illinois-Chicago and Maria Krysan, University of Illinois-Chicago; (Presider) Amanda Lewis, University of Illinois-Chicago; (Panelists) Terrion Williamson, UIC Black Studies; Robin Rue Simmons, Evanston Reparations Program and First Repair; Joey Mogul, People’s Law Office; Amber S. Hendley, UnBlocked Englewood
Labor Organizing in Chicago: Contemporary and Historical Perspectives
This session explores the city’s rich labor history and its ongoing significance in the contemporary labor movement in the United States. It brings together experts to examine the evolution of labor movements in Chicago, from the pivotal Haymarket Affair of 1886 to recent unionization efforts in various industries. Panelists will discuss the unique challenges and triumphs of Chicago’s labor organizers, considering changing economic landscapes, demographic shifts, and political influences. Through the conversation between the panelists and audience, this panel aims to draw connections between historical labor struggles and contemporary issues, including the fight for fair wages, workplace safety, workers’ rights in the gig economy, and more. By examining both past and present, this panel can provide valuable insights into the continuing importance of labor organizing in shaping Chicago’s social and economic fabric.
(Session Organizer) Eunmi Mun, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; (Presider) Emily E. LB. Twarog, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; (Panelists) Lilia Fernández, University of Illinois at Chicago; Stephanie Farmer, Roosevelt University; Stephanie Fortado, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Solidarity City: Community Change through Cross-racial and Cross-institutional Partnerships
In partnership with the Sociology Action Network, this panel explores the transformative impact of cross-racial and cross-institutional community-engaged partnerships on transformative change in Chicago, highlighting successful collaborations that bridge racial and institutional divides. Chicago, a predominantly Black and Brown city, is characterized by stark social and racial inequalities and faces significant challenges in fostering inclusion and liberation. With a focus on community-driven solutions, the invited panelists provide insights into how grassroots organizations, educational institutions, and municipal agencies across the city have collaborated to address systemic issues such as housing instability, neighborhood change, educational inequity, and social inclusion.
(Session Organizer and Presider) Teresa Irene Gonzales, Loyola University Chicago; (Panelists) Twyla Blackmond Larnell, Loyola University Chicago; John Zeigler, Goldin Institute and DePaul University; David Stovall, UIC; Gina Spitz, Loyola University Chicago; Teresa Córdova, UIC Great Cities Institute
Teaching About Racism and Racial history in Chicago and Illinois
Currently there are widespread calls to provide a more robust, complex and accurate curriculum about the history and present-day circumstances of racism in our society. The racial reckoning of the last few years has accelerated already existing calls for the expansion of ethnic studies, for increasing collective racial literacy, and for providing the kind of foundation that will help young people to understand their communities and to advance racial justice. Educators across the country continue to press forward with this work despite a significant organized legal and cultural backlash (often termed “whitelash”) spearheaded against teaching about race / racism. Chicago presents an important context for understanding how schools and teachers, often engaged with organizers, are pushing ahead. In Chicago schools today there are both local and state-mandated racial history and racism-related curriculum requirements that have been or are about to be implemented (e.g., Reparations Won, Asian American History), as well as new Chicago-based curriculum materials being created by groups such as Facing History and Ourselves and the Folded Map Project. This panel will talk about the history of these efforts, some of the opportunities and challenges of the moment and why this work is critically important for our young people and society more generally.
(Session Organizers) Amanda Lewis, University of Illinois-Chicago and Maria Krysan, University of Illinois-Chicago; (Presider) Eve Ewing, University of Chicago; (Panelists) Yamali Rodriguez-Gruger, Chicago Public Schools; Jessica Marshall, Spencer Foundation; Tonika Johnson, Folded Map Project; Ken Garcia-Gonzalez, Facing History and Ourselves, Chicago
The Chicago Race Riot of 1919: Remembering, Memorializing, and Repairing Racial Harm Over 100 Years Later
This session brings together community activists, guides, leaders, and scholars to discuss the Chicago Race Riot of 1919 as it surpasses its 100-year anniversary. Panelists will discuss the events leading up to the event, the aftermath, and the implications of it for Chicago over 100 years later. Special attention will be on contemporary and collective efforts to remember, memorialize, and repair racial harm in Chicago and beyond.
(Session Organizer) Juan Martinez, Northeastern Illinois University; (Presider) Domenico Ferri, Harold Washington College; (Panelists) Syda Taylor, Organic Oness/Chicago Race Riot of 1919 Commemoration Project; Alicia Bunton, Illinois Institute of Technology; Cedric Johnson, University of Illinois Chicago; Amy Kate Bailey, University of Illinois at Chicago
The City at 100
The 2025 Meeting of the American Sociological Association in Chicago happens to fall on the hundredth anniversary of the release of The City by Park, Burgess, and McKenzie, providing an auspicious occasion to consider the legacy of this early manifesto for urban research, and specifically urban research in Chicago. Along with other foundational urban texts like The Philadelphia Negro (1899) and Twenty Years at Hull House (Addams 1910), The City laid out a set theoretical puzzles, methodological challenges, and social problems to be tackled by social scientists looking to use the city as a “laboratory” for answering pressing questions of their day, and inspired generations of urbanists who came after them. In this session, presenters will consider the afterlives of this volume. We ask not only what still resonates and what might be better left behind, but also how ideas from The City are relevant not only to contemporary Chicago, but also portable to those doing urban research in geographic and temporal contexts vastly different from those studied by Park, Burgess, and McKenzie.
(Session Organizer and Presider) Jeffrey Nathaniel Parker, University of New Orleans; (Panelists) Marco Garrido, University of Chicago; Mario Small, Columbia University; Rob Sampson, Harvard University; Japonica Brown-Saracino, Boston University
