Thank you for applying to participate in Testimony & Transformation.

Testimony & Transformation is an immersive, two-day writing workshop that will bring together 10-12 returning citizens in a space of affirmation, safety, and collaboration. During the workshop, participants tap their own creativity and experiences as they build storytelling skills and develop stories of witness to be used to create social change.

Guided, trauma-informed conversations will reflect on famous witness writings and speeches from authors such as Angela Davis, James Baldwin, and Jericho Brown, as models for crafting new stories of witness. Participants will reflect on their experiences in the justice system and the challenges faced by returning citizens in Chicago. They will consider mass incarceration in America and the complex layers of violence in our culture. What participants have witnessed and experienced will be front and center in discussion, as they examine the intersections of racism, gender identity and violence, and historical trauma in their families and their communities and in their own lives.

First and foremost, this is a writing and storytelling workshop. A series of in-seminar writing exercises will help participants explore their voices, test their skills, and craft personal narratives. The weekend will include concentrated workshop discussion of writings produced during the two days. Ideal candidates for this workshop will be looking to generate new witness stories and to improve their storytelling skills and techniques, so that they can go public with their stories through various form of writing, public speaking, and social justice advocacy.