Chiraq
Dr. Carl Bell, Hon. Will Burns, John Fountain, and Rev. Michael Pfleger
Thursday, Jul 9, 2015
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Speakers
Dr. Carl Bell
Dr. Carl C. Bell, M.D. is Staff Psychiatrist at Jackson Park Hospital’s Outpatient Family Practice Clinic and Inpatient Consultation Liaison Service. In addition, he is a Retired Clinical Professor of Psychiatry & Public Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago. During 40+ years, he has published more than 500 articles, chapters, and books on mental health and authored The Sanity of Survival. He is co-editor of Pequegnat W and Bell CC (eds). "Family and HIV/AIDS: Cultural and Contextual Issues in Prevention and Treatment" and Jeste D and Bell CC (eds). "Psychiatric Clinics of North America – Prevention in Psychiatry". He is a member of the Executive Committee of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. In 2012 he was presented the Special Presidential Commendation of the American Psychiatric Association in recognition of his outstanding advocacy for mental illness prevention and for person-centered mental health wellness and recovery, and the 2012 Agnes Purcell McGavin Award for Prevention in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. In 2014, he was presented the American Psychiatric Association’s Distinguished Service Award and the Abraham Halpern Humanitarian Award from the American Association of Social Psychiatry.
Hon. William D. "Will" Burns
William D. “Will” Burns is currently serving in his second term as 4th Ward Alderman of the City of Chicago. In February 2011, he was elected Alderman of the 4th Ward after being elected two terms for Illinois State Representative for the 26th district. As alderman of the 4th Ward, Will is committed to attracting quality commercial and residential development, improving neighborhood public schools, enhancing public safety, and increasing transparency, efficiency, and accountability in city operations. Alderman Burns is now the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Child Development. He serves on seven committees: Budget and Government Operations, Rules and Ethics, Finance, Housing and Real Estate, Pedestrian and Traffic Safety, Transportation and Public Way, and Workforce Development and Audit. In addition to these committees, Alderman Burns currently serves on Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s Working Family Task Force and also served on the Ethics Reform Task Force, Minimum Wage Working Group, and Affordable Requirements Ordinance (ARO) Working Group. In the Illinois House, Will passed laws to increase economic opportunity by reducing barriers to licensure, incentivizing community based alternatives to incarceration, and protecting renters from the foreclosure crisis. He was a strong supporter of efforts to reform Illinois' procurement and campaign finance laws. During his time in the Illinois House, he also served on Governor Pat Quinn’s Budgeting for Results Commission. A strong commitment to social justice and civic engagement is demonstrated through Burns’ participation on the boards of several not-for-profit organizations, such as, Mikva Challenge, Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, the Blue Gargoyle Youth Service Center, and the South East Chicago Commission. Burns attended the University of Chicago where he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees. A native son of Chicago.
John Fountain
A native son of Chicago, John W. Fountain is an award-winning columnist, journalist, professor, publisher, and author of "True Vine: A Young Black Man’s Journey of Faith, Hope and Clarity" and "Dear Dad: Reflections on Fatherhood". A professor of journalism at Roosevelt University, he writes a weekly Sunday column for the Chicago Sun-Times. As a journalist, Fountain has chronicled the story of murder for more than 25 years. In 2014, Fountain’s Sun-Times column was awarded best column by the Illinois Press Association. In 2014 and 2011, Fountain received the prestigious Peter Lisagor Award for Exemplary Journalism. Fountain won the award for news column or commentary in the category of daily newspapers with a circulation of 250,000 or more from the Chicago Headline Club—the largest local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in the country. In 2012, Fountain received the Illinois Associated Press Editors Association Award and the Chicago Journalists Association Sarah Brown Boyden Award for his Chicago Sun-Times column. Fountain has been a reporter at some of the nation’s top newspapers. He was a national correspondent for The New York Times and a staff writer at the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune, where he was once that newspaper’s chief crime reporter. Fountain frequently speaks across the country at churches, schools, universities, and for other civic and social organizations. A graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, he often shares his inspirational story of going from poverty and the urban mean streets of Chicago’s West Side to the top of his profession. Fountain is currently working on two book projects, “No Place for Me: A Letter to the Church at America” and “Son of the Times: Life, Laughter, Love and Coffee,” a book of essays. Both books will be published this summer.
Rev. Dr. Michael Pfleger
Rev. Dr. Michael Louis Pfleger was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago on May 14, 1975. In 1981, at the age of 31, he became the youngest full pastor in the diocese when he was appointed Pastor of Saint Sabina Church. Father Pfleger has been recognized for his fight against alcohol and tobacco billboards, violence, drugs, and racism in national publications such as People, Time, Ebony, Newsweek and Jet magazines; The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Chicago Tribune, The Chicago Sun-Times, The Chicago Reader, and numerous other papers and journals. He has also been profiled on the following television shows: "Day One" (ABC), "60 Minutes" (CBS), BBC in Great Britain, "Larry King Live" (CNN), and Nightline (ABC). In the course of his extensive and active ministry, Father Pfleger has been recognized for his commitment to equality and his passionate stance against injustice. Some of the awards and honors he has received include: "Keeper of the Dream", Rainbow/Push; Distinguished Service Award, Nation of Islam; "Thurgood Marshall Award", National Black Prosecutors Association; "Monsignor Egan Social Justice Award", DePaul University, "I Am A Man Award", April 4th Foundation in Memphis, TN, "Rosa Parks Award", from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and the "Unsung Hero Award", Wade's World Foundation. He is also the founder of The Ark of St. Sabina Youth Center, the Employment Resource Center, St. Sabina's Elders Village, the Beloved Community Development Center, and St. Sabina Samaritan Building for low income housing. Father Pfleger received his B.A. in Theology from Loyola University, his Master of Divinity from the University of St. Mary of the Lake and an honorary Doctor of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary. He has done post-graduate studies at Mundelein College and the Catholic Theological Union.
