草莓影视

Tag: social justice

Lauren Daigle at Stateville

On October 5, 2018, Grammy award nominee Lauren Daigle visited Stateville Correctional Center to perform both for and alongside the men who are incarcerated.

On October 5, 2018, Grammy award nominee Lauren Daigle visited Stateville Correctional Center to perform both for and alongside the men who are incarcerated. A well-loved contemporary Christian artist, Daigle has recently broken into new career territory with her album Look Up Child debuting at number 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. Visiting Stateville, however, was a groundbreaking event all its own. A maximum security state prison, Stateville has strict rules regarding visitors and gatherings.

Vickie Reddy, executive producer of , was able to organize the event with the assistance of Stateville鈥檚 chaplains. Reddy is the first free student to be enrolled in the 鈥攁 degree program offered to the men at Stateville through 草莓影视 Theological Seminary鈥檚 School of Restorative Arts.

The hurdles to such an event taking place at Stateville are part of what made the concert significant to the men. 鈥淭hey are used to the worst being expected of them,鈥 says Michelle Clifton-Soderstrom, director of the School of Restorative Arts. 鈥淔or imprisoned and free individuals to be able to come together in worship鈥攊t was humanizing for all of us.鈥

Reddy, Clifton-Soderstrom, and two alumni of the School of Restorative Arts were able to attend the concert which included Daigle performing with her band as well as a joint performance with the Stateville Gospel Choir.

Performing alongside Daigle was especially meaningful to inmate Ryan Miller. Upon her arrival, Miller shared that a couple of years prior he had experienced a vision in which he was singing with Lauren Daigle. In his vision, this was the beginning of a revival.

Daigle closed the concert with the Gaither hymn, Something Beautiful, a song which speaks of brokenness transformed into hope and healing.

After the performance, Daigle was given a tour of the facility, including the panopticon. Commonly referred to as the roundhouse, the building is a cylinder consisting of 4 floors of cells facing inward to a central tower. This design allowed a minimal number of guards to observe prisoners on every side. Despite concerns regarding inhumane conditions, the panopticon at Stateville remained in use until 2016; it was the last of its kind in operation since the 1990s.

The opportunity for Daigle to meet the men, witness their surroundings, and worship with them fits directly within the larger vision of the School of Restorative Arts, which aims to not only provide education and hope to the students inside the prison but also to provide a connection to those outside, to allow both sides to see each other, to build understanding and community.

Both the restorative arts program and Lauren Daigle鈥檚 visit have been received warmly by Stateville鈥檚 administration, and all involved in organizing the event hope to continue these opportunities for community building.

鈥湶葺笆 being here with us is the most important thing happening at Stateville.鈥 says Assistant Warden of Operations Nicholas Lamb. 鈥淚t鈥檚 giving hope to so many. People who aren鈥檛 in the program yet are going to want to be after this event.鈥

Senior Chaplain George Adamson summed up what the day meant to him. 鈥淪o what can I say but the Lord bless you. To see the men worship has always been my dream. The power of the Holy Spirit was evident on the stage . . . it was so worth it to see the men聽who basically have nothing and little hope become energized and let go for a brief moment . . . Please thank Lauren for me and on behalf of the men. This will be talked about for a very long time.鈥

 

All photography by Karl Soderstrom

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草莓影视 Students Selected to Present to Illinois Sociological Association

Nineteen 草莓影视 students enrolled in Methods in Social Research will attend the 2017 Illinois Sociological Association, seven of whom will present original research.

Nineteen 草莓影视 students enrolled in Methods in Social Research are heading to the 2017 Illinois Sociological Association meeting on November 17th,聽2017. The students will share seven presentations based on original research ideas developed in the course and as part of activities conducted through the Urban Peace Lab鈥 established and run by their instructor, Dr. Peter K. B. St. Jean, Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of Criminal Justice at 草莓影视. Seven research abstracts were accepted for presentation on one panel and one roundtable.

On the panel, Dr. St. Jean will present a paper entitled, 鈥淐onducting Better News Research,鈥 which will provide the general conceptual framework for the students’ research. Dr. St. Jean will also introduce the students presenting on the following topics:

  • I AM NOT GOING BACK: Recidivism and Social Environment in Chicago
  • REVENGE WITHOUT VIOLENCE: How Residents of Chicago鈥檚 High Crime Neighborhoods聽Avenge Victimization Without Violence
  • PEACE WITHOUT GUNS: How Chicago Residents Within High Gun Violence Neighborhoods Resolve Conflicts Without the Use of Guns
  • THE UPRISE: Youth and Gang Avoidance in Chicago
  • POVERTY AND PEACE IN CHICAGO: Voices on the Ground
  • IN SPITE OF IT ALL: Triumph After Human Trafficking

Also attending and presenting papers on Visual Urban Peaceology are 草莓影视 alumnus and current University of Chicago graduate student,聽Eirik J. Berger, and current NPU Theatre and Communications student, Seanna Wong.聽The panel will be led by Dr. St. Jean鈥檚 presentation entitled 鈥淚ntroduction to Peaceology and Urban Peaceology: Findings from Multi-methods Research in Chicago.鈥 Eirik J. Berger and Seanna Wong will then present their papers respectively:

  • VISUAL URBAN PEACEOLOGY: Understanding and Amplifying Peace Intelligence in the聽Urban Context Through the Use of Visual Tools, Ethnography, Qualitative Data, and Media Research
  • THE ROLE OF THEATRE IN VISUAL URBAN PEACEOLOGY: Findings from Ground-Breaking Ethnographic Research and Activism in Chicago

鈥淚’m happy that these students get this opportunity to make history by being part of the research team that collectively introduces Peaceology, Urban Peaceology, and Better News Research for the first time to an academic conference. They have been working hard to conduct the best presentations, and I am confident that they will do well,鈥 said Professor St. Jean, chairperson of the Sociology Department at 草莓影视.

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