Change Agents The Podcast

Michelle Clopton was in her twenties when Chicago police attempted to force her to confess to a crime she didn’t commit. For 72 hours, she was brutally questioned, deprived of food, and tortured. Today, she is one of the few women to publicly share her experience of abuse. But she’s not alone. 

Under the leadership of CPD Commander Jon Burge, more than 100 Black people were tortured by Chicago police in the ’70s and ’80s to elicit false confessions. 

A group of survivors have created the Chicago Torture Justice Center to begin rebuilding lives, healing, and finding joy. Michelle’s story reveals the unique impact of police abuse on women — and what it takes to survive and thrive.

Produced by Jewél Jackson @JewlJackson1 for Reparations Media | Editorial support from Juneteenth Productions @juneteenthprod2 | Collaboration with Chicago Torture Justice Center @chitorture | Sound design by Will Jarvis @willyfrederick | Music: Sara Abdelaal, Blue Dot Sessions

Follow us: changeagentsthepodcast.com | Donate: donate.stripe.com/4gw2980yG7Ez9bO3cf

Key words: Chicago, police, Chicago Police Department, CPD, John Burge, torture, corruption, brutality, survivor, false confession, prison, incarceration, jail, trauma, mental health, healing, solutions, Say Her Name, plea, accountability rule

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Produced by Dilpreet Raju | Criminal records can sometimes create seemingly insurmountable hurdles to employment, a key factor toward reducing recidivism rates.  Defy Ventures teaches the incarcerated, and returning citizens how to build their own business.  Their program is a game-changer, not just for the system impacted, but for business leaders who are given a chance to shed biases, and discover an invaluable stream of worker talent.   

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Produced by Justin Agrelo | In 2010, a group of men incarcerated at Danville Correctional Center had a thought: how could they help stem community violence plaguing Chicago from the inside of a prison roughly three hours away?  The men formed an academic study group they later named Community Anti-Violence Education (CAVE). They began examining the multiple layers of trauma and violence, both internally and externally hoping they could find a way to stem the damage done to their communities. What they didn’t realize at the time was that this study group would blossom into something much deeper. 

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Produced by Daphne Watson | Behind the walls of the notorious Stateville Correctional Facility in Illinois, incarcerated individuals, educators, attorneys, students, activists, and legislators gather several times a month for the DePaul University Behind the Walls Law and Policy Think Tank. This collaborative space empowers its members  — some serving life sentences  —  to draft real legislation aimed at dismantling felony disenfranchisement and restoring full citizenship to returning citizens. It's more than a think tank, it’s a model of participatory democracy, born from within the system it seeks to transform.

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Produced by Jane Carlson  |  Marlon Chamberlain couldn’t chaperone his son’s field trip or be the executor of his father’s estate because of a decades-old drug conviction. He’s now leading a group of all formerly incarcerated members working to overturn or amend nearly 1,200 Illinois laws that restrict people with records from being full citizens, from being fully free.

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Produced by  Citlali Perez  |  Women are being imprisoned at higher rates than ever.  As they return home they face a unique set of challenges, because they are often their families primary caretakers they face harsher parole oversight, making it all the more difficult to reckon unresolved trauma. G.O.D. helps these women meet their immediate needs (such as clothing or housing), and then works with them to find a path back to a productive and happy life.

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Produced by Corli Jay  |  Chicago’s Choose To Own program gives low-income residents the educational and financial support to buy their first home, helping them navigate a confusing and discriminatory mortgage and appraisal system. Still, some participants worry their newfound financial stability may push them out of the program — jeopardizing the wealth the program was designed to build. 

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How to Tackle Antiblackness

"Together we are powerful." "Black and Brown solidarity." "Yellow peril supports Black power." Interracial solidarity is foundational in the fight for racial justice for all, but often interracial conflict steals headlines instead. Just how can people of color transcend deep differences and internalized anti-Blackness? Listen to how Chicago-based organization People Matter forged a path to true interracial solidarity through education and compassion.

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