When Truth Speaks, Policy Must Listen
JANUARY 23, 2026
Chicago Hearings on Human & Civil Rights Violations
On January 21–22, 2026, McCormick Theological Seminary hosted the HART (Human Rights, Anti-Authoritarianism, Reparatory & Restorative) Truth Telling Commission — two days of public hearings that put names, faces, and neighborhoods to the headlines about ICE raids, human and civil-rights violations, and community harm. Organized by McCormick’s Center for Reparatory Justice, Transformation and Remediation (CRJTR) in partnership with the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference (SDPC), the convening advanced McCormick’s core work: forming justice-minded leaders who read Scripture alongside the streets and practice ministry as public witness.
This Chicago gathering did more than document pain. It moved in the Black Church tradition of re-storying—refusing narratives that flatten our communities and lifting testimony that restores dignity, truth, and agency. In the shadow of militarized enforcement and the long reach of structural racism, the hearings elevated first-hand testimony and pressed toward remedy, so policy—and public imagination—could be reshaped by what communities have actually lived.
“When enforcement is militarized, harm becomes policy,” said Dr. Iva E. Carruthers, CRJTR Director. “ICE raids and fear-based policing produce predictable human-rights violations: families torn apart, unlawful detention, raids that terrorize neighborhoods, and trauma that lingers long after the vehicles leave. These hearings documented the truth, preserved testimony, and moved us toward accountability — because human dignity is not negotiable.”
CAPTURING REAL STORIES, RE-STORYING PUBLIC MEMORY
Across two days, community members stepped to the microphone and spoke directly to a panel of Commissioners that included — Father Michael Pfleger (Faith Community of Saint Sabina), Rev. Dr. Janette Wilson (Rainbow PUSH Coalition), Atty. Vickie Casanova (UN Human Rights Advocate), Rick Tulsky (Pulitzer Prize winner), among others — followed by open, probing Q&A. Testifiers also submitted written accounts to deepen the record. Every word was transcribed and videotaped, creating a lasting archive for education, advocacy, pastoral care, and policy work. Around the room, partner observers from community and civic organizations prepared to carry findings outward and coordinate next-step mobilization.
Two moments captured the moral clarity of the day. Stacy Davis-Gates, President of the Chicago Teachers Union, reminded the room that history has many fronts:
“Everything wasn’t Selma. Everything wasn’t Washington.”
Her testimony named the everyday sites where children, families, and organized labor bear the weight of policy decisions — “the clear-eyed history lesson we needed,” as one Commissioner observed.
Later, Bishop John-Michael Villarreal (MAM ’26), testified to the harms facing Latino communities he ministers among in Little Village and Pilsen, and to what patriotism demands in these circumstances:
“The cost is too high! Patriotism is not blind loyalty. Patriotism is moral courage. Patriotism is loving this country enough to stand up and yell, and tell the truth when it is losing its way.”
Bishop John-Michael Villarreal (MAM ’26)
Stacy Davis-Gates, President of the Chicago Teachers Union
FROM CHICAGO TO A NATIONAL RECKONING
The HART Truth Telling Commission is one expression of a broader Truth Telling & Harm Documentation model co-facilitated by CRJTR and SDPC. Chicago was Phase One … a bridge from local testimony to national action. The initiative aims to curate public memory, develop recommendations for mitigation and remedy, and strengthen a national alliance capable of holding the United States to universal human-rights standards.
FORMATION IN ACTION
For McCormick, truth-telling is not an add-on; it’s theological formation in practice. Our students learn to preach with evidence, to pastor with data and story, to organize with neighbors, and to re-story communities that have been misnamed by power. These hearings modeled the kind of ministry we teach: merciful and measurable, prophetic and pragmatic, spiritually grounded and civically engaged.
WHAT COMES NEXT
The work does not end with the gavel. Content from the Chicago hearings will undergird ongoing education, advocacy, and accountability nationwide — fuel for policy conversations, community trainings, classrooms, and congregations. McCormick will continue forming leaders who can hold the mic for testimony, translate witness into policy recommendations, and shepherd communities toward repair.
To everyone who stood up to tell the truth — Commissioners, testifiers, partner observers, and neighbors — thank you. Your witness widens the public record and strengthens the long work of liberation. Your courage in remembering truth, telling it plainly, and re-storying our future together moves us closer to repair.
If you would like to support this work, please visit mccormick.edu/supporthart.
