LSTC Celebrates Black History Month with the theme, “Reparations: Educate, Liberate and Celebrate!”

The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago’s (LSTC) announces the theme for its Black History Month 2023; Reparations: Educate, Liberate and Celebrate! It is no secret that Black communities continue to suffer under oppressive regimes, both in the US and globally. This year’s theme was adopted to address the question, “How can the breach caused by decades of harm and oppression be repaired?” Hence, the goal is that through education, and liberation Reparations can be achieved for the millions of African American and BIPOC people who continue to bear the weight of white privilege and supremacy.

The celebration began on Wednesday, Feb. 1, with a reception to kick off the month. This event featured an exhibition of Black art, a gathering of the Lutheran Black and African Descent community including students, staff, alumni and members of the African Descent Lutheran Association to engage in a lively conversation on “Black Lutheranism and Reparations.” The discussion will be led by LSTC Professor Emeritus Dr. Richard J. Perry, Jr., Professor Emeriti of Church and Society.

February 8th will herald the Opening of LSTC’s Black History celebration with a Worship Service. The guest preacher is the noted preacher Rev. Dr. Alise Barrymore of the Emmaus Community Church. Worship services will be held each week during the month of February, featuring Black liturgical traditions.

and program associate for the Katie Canon Center of Womanist Leadership at Union Presbyterian Seminary and Christian Harris, Chairperson of the Oak Park Reparations Task Force and Executive Director of the Oak Park based non-profit Walk-the-Walk, focused on land reparations.

A day of Rest and Restoration, for those fatigued by the stress of justice work, will be hosted on Friday, Feb. 17th. Beginning at 10:00 am and running throughout the day. Hour long sessions will be facilitated encouraging rest and restoration, including Yoga, a Spiritual Soaker, and Zumba. All these events will be held in-person on the LSTC campus.

FOSTER, DURBIN, DUCKWORTH INTRODUCE RESOLUTION TO NAME FERMILAB RESEARCH CENTER AFTER RENOWNED PHYSICIST DR. HELEN EDWARDS

Representatives Bill Foster (D-IL-11) and Lauren Underwood (DIL-14), and Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced that they introduced a bicameral resolution to rename Fermilab’s Integrated Engineering Research Center (IERC) after the late Dr. Helen Edwards, who worked at Fermilab as a particle physicist for 40 years. The IERC will be home to new office and lab space that will host an intersection of scientific disciplines.

“Over its history, Fermilab’s success has been built by the hard work of committed scientists. Helen Edwards was a scientific and technical leader of Fermilab from its earliest days, and she was a dear friend. Helen was also deeply committed to the accelerator research and engineering that will be carried out in the Integrated Engineering Research Center, and it is altogether fitting that it bears her name. I’m proud to be continuing this effort in the U.S. House to honor her memory,” said Foster.

CHATHAM-SOUTHEAST

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SOUTH END Washington Heights,Roseland,Rosemoor, Englewood,West Englewood, Auburn-Gresham, Morgan Park, Maple Park, Mt. Vernon, Fernwood, Bellevue, Beverly, Pullman, West Pullman, West Pullman,Riverdale, Jeffrey Manor and Hegewisch.

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HYDE PARK Lake Meadows, Oakland, Prairie Shores,Douglas, Grand Boulevard, Kenwood, Woodland,South Shore and Hyde Park.

CHICAGO WEEKEND Chicago Westside Communities, Austin and Garfield Park

SUBURBAN TIMES WEEKLY

BloomTownship, Chicago Heights, Flossmoor,FordHeights, Glenwood, Homewood, Lansing ,Lynwood, Olympia Fileds, Park Forest,Sauk Village,South Chicago and Steger

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A panel discussion will be held on Feb. 9th, at 5:30 pm, on the topic “Reparations: What’s It All About?” This panel will discuss the history of Reparations, and its significance to the Black Community. LSTC’s Dr. Linda Thomas will moderate the discussion, with keynote speaker the Rev. Dr. Iva Carruthers, General Secretary of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference and Executive Director of the Center for Reparatory Justice, Transformation and Remediation at McCormick Theological Seminary. The second panelist is Dr. Marvin E. Wickware, Jr., Assistant Professor of Church and Society and Ethics at LSTC.

On February 14th at 4:30pm, a panel discussion will be held on the topic “Seeking Justice and Reparations for the Land.” This panel will explore the justice of reparations for those harmed. This is an important conversation since the announcement of the recent sale of the Lutheran School of Theology to the University of Chicago. The current location of LSTC has a vile history of displacement of those indigenous to the land. Panelists include Dr. Paula Owens Parker, author

The Black History celebration includes a Book signing for black authors on Feb. 15th highlighting the work of Ken Wheeler, US Resurgence of American Terrorism and LSTC’s Sharei Green God’s Holy Darkness. DaBook Joint bookstore will host a book fair, and a reception sponsored by the African Descent Lutheran Association will follow the book signing. Juneteenth will also be honored on Feb 23rd as Dr. Jajuan Johnson, Professor and Research Associate of the Lemon Project at Mary and William College will discuss the history and “The Significance of Juneteenth to African Americans.” The Juneteenth Day events will include a Taste of Blackness lunch, followed by a discussion led by DABook Joint on black books discussing Juneteenth. Wrapping up the month-long celebration, ELCA Bishop of the Metro Chicago Synod, Bishop Yehiel Curry, an LSTC alum, will lead the Wednesday Worship on Feb. 22nd at 11:15am.

The 2023 Black History Month celebration at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago is the result of planning and commitment by a committee of Black students, staff, and faculty to highlight the history and accomplishments of Black Americans. This program is sponsored by The LSTC Albert “Pete” and Cheryl Stewart Pero Center for Intersectionality Studies and made possible through support from the LSTC Office of Student Services, the Chicago Chapter of the African Descent Lutheran Association, and other private donors.

Admission is free for all events, and all are welcome! All events will be hybrid, both in-person and streamed live on LSTC’s Facebook page, unless otherwise specified.

For a complete schedule of events, including speakers, dates, times, and COVID protocols, please visit www.lstc.edu/news-events/ bhm23/

“Dr. Helen Edwards was an extraordinary scientist who dedicated 40 years of her life to deepening our understanding of particle physics. Her pioneering work on the Tevatron earned her well-deserved national recognition and provided the foundation for the advanced particle physics research conducted by Fermilab scientists today,” said Durbin. “I cannot think of a worthier namesake for Fermilab’s new IERC than Dr. Helen Edwards.”

“Illinois’s own Fermilab is a crown jewel of American innovation at the forefront of cutting-edge science,” Duckworth said. “For years, hundreds of scientists and engineers at Fermilab have dedicated their expertise to scientific discovery and answering some of the world’s most complicated questions, including the late and brilliant Dr. Helen Edwards. Not only is renaming the Integrated Engineering Research Center after her well-deserved, I think it tells generations of girls interested in science that they belong at the table. I’m proud to help reintroduce this resolution with Senator Durbin.”

“Helen Edwards was an inspiring and passionate scientist who was dedicated and instrumental to the development of the Tevatron. I am pleased we can honor her by naming the Integrated Engineering Research Center after someone who embodied the spirit of Fermilab,” said Dr. Lia Merminga, Director of Fermilab.

Dr. Edwards was a particle physicist best known for overseeing the design, construction, commissioning, and operation of the Tevatron, a machine that for 25 years served as the most powerful particle collider in the world. The Tevatron was used to find two of three fundamental particles discovered at Fermilab – the top quark in 1995 and the tau neutrino in 2000.

Dr. Edwards’ work on the Tevatron earned her a MacArthur Genius Grant in 1988 and the National Medal of Technology in 1989. The Tevatron remained in use until 2011 when Fermilab moved to new accelerator projects like the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility, which relies heavily on the foundations built by Dr. Edwards. Dr. Edwards passed away in 2016.

HUNTER CELEBRATES $1.8 MILLION IN PRE-APPRENTICESHIP INVESTMENTS

CHICAGO – Several pre-apprenticeship programs in the 3rd District received over $1.8 million in combined investments thanks to the support of State Senator Mattie Hunter.

“I am pleased to see these pre-apprenticeship programs have received the funding they need to further provide training and support services for participants,” said Hunter (D-Chicago). “These investments will pave the way to good-paying jobs for historically underrepresented populations.”

The Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship was created to promote diversity, inclusion and use of apprentices in state-funded capital projects. Comprehensive pre-apprenticeship programs help participants gain admission to apprenticeship programs, which provide a greater opportunity to obtain employment in the construction trades and secure long-term employment.

A total of $13 million awarded in the program’s second year will expand access to the program across the state and serve up to 1,400 pre-apprentices — a 40% increase from the program’s inaugural year. Organizations in the 3rd District receiving funds include: Children First Fund, $250,000; EDDR Foundation-Chicago, $500,000; HIRE360, $555,000; and Project Hood Communities Development Corporation, $500,000.

“These programs are key to building a skilled labor force and will not only benefit our community but serve as an investment in our economy as well,” Hunter said. “People interested in the trades can take advantage of pre-apprenticeship opportunities to develop a marketable set of skills.”

Participants of the program attend tuition-free and receive a stipend and other supportive, barrier reduction services to help enter the construction industry. Upon completion of the program, pre-apprentices receive industry aligned certifications to prepare and qualify them to continue to a registered apprenticeship program in one of the trades.

Information on the Illinois Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program can be found here.