03/05: Trauma Center Activists to Disrupt UofC Fundraiser

:::UPDATE:::

BREAKING: TRAUMA CENTER ACTIVISTS SHUT DOWN MAGNIFICENT MILE

Students, youth prepped face arrest outside UofC gala

When/Where: 5:45pm protesters deploy

When: N. Michigan/Pearson

What: Arrestable action followed by 60+ person picket and rally outside UofC luxury fundraiser

Visual: approx. 70 person crowd; banners reading “Obama Library: Yes; UofC: No -- No trauma center, no library!” “$4.5-billion and no trauma center”

Chicago, IL – Members of the trauma care coalition, including youth, mothers, clergy, students, doctors and nurses are gathered on Chicago’s Gold Coast, ready to block rush hour traffic on Michigan Avenue, outside the five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel, where the University of Chicago is holding a fundraiser as part of its $4.5-billion dollar capital campaign.

Ten activists are risking arrest to send the message that “business as usual” cannot continue while black lives are being lost due to a lack of adult trauma care on the South Side and the University of Chicago’s refusal to expand trauma care. A rally and picket outside the hotel of approximately 75 supporters will join the arrestees in calling on alumni donors not to support the University until it commits to opening a trauma center.


Inside, trauma care activists plan to disrupt the gala. Videos of the inside disruption will be uploaded immediately to the Southside Together Organising for Power YouTube account.


“Chicago’s elite continue to support an institution that has ravaged black communities on the South Side and has failed to take responsibility for that,” explained Veronica Morris-Moore, who is risking arrest, “We’re here to remind the UofC and the its donors that black lives do indeed matter.”

The University of Chicago launched its current “Inquiry and Impact” capital campaign in October 2014 with a goal of $4.5-billion. This action follows the successful disruption of the gala launch of the campaign was also disrupted by trauma center protesters. Organizers note that the cost of a trauma center represents a miniscule proportion of the fundraising goals but add that the monetization of black lives is also symptomatic of the racist policies of the institution.

“The University’s defense has repeatedly been that they can’t afford to build an adult level-one trauma center without cutting other services,” said UofC student Kayli Horne, also risking arrest, “We know that this is a lie intended to present a trade-off. They can afford it but it hasn’t been a priority. We’re here to demonstrate them of the urgency of the need for trauma care.”

The action also comes as the University is entering the final phase of its fight for the Obama Presidential Library. Activists and community members have long been calling on the University to open an adult trauma center before it is awarded the library. As Victoria Crider, a South Side youth organizer who graduated high school just blocks from Obama’s Kenwood home explained: “The University of Chicago should not get the honor and prestige that comes with the Obama Library when they are neglecting the needs of black and brown communities on the South Side.”

Activists are optimistic that the attention they are bringing to the lack of trauma care is bringing results. In December, the University of Chicago agreed to raise the age limit of its pediatric trauma center by two years, a move organizers had long demanded as a stop-gap measure. That decision coincided with increased public attention in the run-up to the deadline for proposals to host the Obama Library.

The community’s demand for trauma care was sparked by the death of Woodlawn youth leader Damian Turner, and is led by the Woodlawn-based Fearless Leading by the Youth, along with the Kenwood-Oakland Community Organization, Students for Health Equity at the UofC, National Nurses United and many faith groups including the United Church of Christ.

The South Side is currently a trauma desert for adults, meaning that victims of shootings and other serious injuries must be taken over ten miles away, to the Near North Side or south west suburbs. The call for trauma care is also supported by a new study by the Illinois Department of Public Health which states that longer travel times to a trauma center increases the likelihood of dying, the study also states that the U of C is best positioned to expand access to trauma care, and that the U of C could further raise the age limit of their pediatric trauma center.

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Trauma activists to crash UChicago Gold Coast Gala
South Siders to rally outside luxury fundraiser -- "No trauma center, no Obama library for UofC"

	When/Where: 5:30 pm press conference, 5:45 action, Michigan and Pearson
	When: Ritz-Carlton Hotel, N. Michigan/Pearson (Water Tower Place)
	What: Disruptive action followed by 60+ person picket and rally outside UofC luxury fundraiser
	Visual: Approx. 70 person crowd; banners reading “Obama Library: Yes; UofC: No -- No trauma center, no library!”
	        “$4.5-billion and no trauma center”

Chicago, IL – Members of the trauma care coalition, including youth, mothers, clergy, students, doctors and nurses will gather on Chicago’s Gold Coast, where the University of Chicago will be holding a fundraiser at Chicago's five-star Ritz-Carlton Hotel as part of its $4.5-billion dollar capital campaign.

Activists and supporters including faith leaders and medical professionals will hold a rally and will picket the event, calling on alumni donors not to support the University until it commits to opening a trauma center.

“We’re taking our fight to the north side because we are sick and tired of the lives of young black people on the South Side being devalued as [UofC President Robert] Zimmer raises almost $5 billion and seeks to host the Obama Presidential Library," explained Veronica Morris-Moore, a Woodlawn youth organizer who has faced arrest at previous protests against the University of Chicago. “That’s why we’re making sure this event can’t go forward as planned.”

The University of Chicago launched its current “Inquiry and Impact” capital campaign in October 2014 with a goal of $4.5 billion. The gala launch of the campaign was also disrupted by trauma center protesters. Activists note that the cost of a trauma center amounts to less than one percent of the $4.5-billion the capital campaign is trying to raise based on the University’s own estimates that a trauma center would cost $30-million to open, and less to operate once open.

“I’m putting my body on the line today because I believe I have a responsibility as a UofC student to make sure that my institution stops perpetuating racist inequalities in healthcare on the South Side,” explained University of Chicago undergraduate student Joe Kaplan

The action also comes as the University is entering the final phase of its fight for the Obama Presidential Library. Activists and community members have long been calling on the University to open an adult trauma center before it is awarded the library. As Victoria Crider, a South Side youth organizer who graduated high school just blocks from Obama’s Kenwood home explained: “Obama's Library should absolutely be in Chicago, but the University of Chicago should not get the honor and prestige that comes with that Library when it is neglecting the needs of black and brown communities on the South Side.”

Activists are optimistic that the attention they are bringing to the lack of trauma care is bringing results. In December, the University of Chicago agreed to raise the age limit of its pediatric trauma center by two years, a move organizers had long demanded as a stop-gap measure. That decision coincided with increased public attention in the run-up to the deadline for proposals to host the Obama Library.

The community’s demand for trauma care was sparked by the death of Woodlawn youth leader Damian Turner, and is led by the Woodlawn-based Fearless Leading by the Youth, along with the Kenwood-Oakland Community Organization, Students for Health Equity at the UofC, National Nurses United and many faith groups including the United Church of Christ.

The South Side is currently a trauma desert for adults, meaning that victims of shootings and other serious injuries must be taken over ten miles away, to the Near North Side or south west suburbs. The call for trauma care is also supported by a new study by the Illinois Department of Public Health which states that longer travel times to a trauma center increases the likelihood of dying, the study also states that the U of C is best positioned to expand access to trauma care, and that the U of C could further raise the age limit of their pediatric trauma center.

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Recent stories on the trauma center campaign:

“Here's What U of C Should Do for the City” Crain’s Chicago Business
“Protestors link Obama library with #BlackLivesMatter,” Bloomberg
“UofC Wants to Raise Age Limit at Pediatric Trauma Center,” The Chicago Sun-Times
“UofC Aims to Expand Treatment at Children’s Trauma Center,” The Chicago Tribune
“Trauma center protesters target U. of C. capital campaign,” The Chicago Maroon
“Chicago Faith Leaders Sing, Pray For A South Side Trauma Center ,” Progress Illinois
“Religious leaders march for South Side trauma center," Hyde Park Herald
“South Side Hospital Patients Caught in Trauma Deserts,” (Feature Story), Chicago Tribune
“University of Chicago Alumni: No Donations Until Trauma Center Opened,” Progress Illinois
“Chicago needs help, not Obama Library,” LZ Granderson, CNN.com
“Activists protest university’s bid for Obama Library,” USA Today