July 25, 2024

Moderated by WTTW’s Chicago Tonight Host, Brandis Friedman – Panelists: Pamela Montgomery-Bosley (Purpose Over Pain of St. Sabina), Tim Daly (The Joyce Foundation), Dr. Rebecca Neusteter (UChicago Health Lab), Lorne Runnels (BlackRoots Alliance) and Eric Smith (BMO Bank / Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago)

City Club event description:

The Joyce Foundation is hosting a three-part series, Ending Gun Violence in Chicago: Connecting Policy, Practice and Community, in partnership with the City Club of Chicago.

In collaboration with BlackRoots Alliance and WTTW’s Firsthand Initiative & WTTW News, join us at the first event to engage with community advocates and business, civic and political leaders to discuss a range of solutions to address gun violence in our city.

At the conclusion of these three forums, a white paper of the key takeaways and recommendations from the discussions will be developed and shared with policy makers and civic leaders in the region.

Speakers

Pamela Bosley
Pamela Bosley was born and raised in the City of Chicago, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Olivet University in Illinois with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and a Master’s Degree in Trauma Informed Leadership from Dominique University. She spent more than 20 years in the banking industry. However, after one of her sons, Terrell Bosley at the age of 18 was shot and killed on the grounds of a church in 2006, she changed directions to make a difference in the lives of youth and parents whose children’s lives were taken by violence.

As St. Sabina’s Violence Prevention Executive Director, Pam oversees Purpose Over Pain where she advocates for common sense gun measures while designing creative support services that support survivor families on their journeys of transforming their pain into their new norm and purpose. Also, she has empowered young people to be leaders and self-advocates, guiding them to discover their own voices and abilities to bring change to their communities. As the Founder and CEO of the Terrell Bosley Association, the goal is to strengthen and heal communities.

Pam has been featured in several PSAs and magazines, a novel entitled How Long Will I Cry, and documentaries entitled “Under the Gun” and “Making A Killing.” She has also participated on may panels and spoken on the local and state levels against senseless gun violence in Illinois and elsewhere.

Pam believes that because her son Terrell can no longer speak, she must continue to be his voice for change. She says, “we can change the narrative of our youth and our communities by ending senseless gun violence together.”

Pam Bosley continues to reside in Chicago, Illinois with her husband and is the mother of 3 sons. It is her greatest wish to live and be happy without the element of senseless violence.

City Club video

Tim Daly
Tim Daly is Director of the Foundation’s Gun Violence Prevention & Justice Reform Program, focused on building safe and just communities in the Great Lakes region. Tim manages the Foundation’s grantmaking focused on policies and practices that reduce easy accessibility of guns to those at risk of violence; gun violence-related research and data infrastructure; litigation strategies; and education campaigns focused on the risks of gun ownership. Tim also co-directs the Foundation’s political violence pilot project, designed to respond to the threat of armed extremism, and to mitigate its impact on our democracy and democratic institutions.

Additionally, Tim serves as chair of the Fund for a Safer Future, a collaborative of 30 foundations and donors supporting efforts to prevent gun violence nationwide. He also co-chairs the gun policy action committee of the Partnership for Safe and Peaceful Communities, a donor collaborative focused on reducing gun violence in Chicago.

Prior to joining the Foundation in 2019, Tim served as chief of staff for former U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, and from 2014-2016, was managing director for the Guns and Crime policy section at the Center for American Progress (CAP). From 2010–2014, Tim also served as interim chief of staff and legislative director for U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), where he was responsible for establishing and directing the House Democratic Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, which Thompson continues to chair.

Tim also previously served as a fellow in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia from 2009 to 2010; campaign manager and finance director for the Peter Franchot for Maryland state comptroller campaign; and communications director for U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) from 2004 to 2006.

Originally from Albany, New York, Tim graduated with honors and a degree in government and politics and economics from the University of Maryland in 2004. He also graduated from the Georgetown University Law Center in 2010 and is admitted to the bar in New York State and the District of Columbia.

Dr. Rebecca Neusteter
Dr. S. Rebecca Neusteter is the Executive Director of the University of Chicago Health Lab. Dr. Neusteter has dedicated her career to advancing equity in the criminal justice and health care systems. Her work spans the country. She is focused on reducing justice system contact, disparities, and collateral consequences. She works to enhance public safety, civic participation, and opportunities to support health and vitality. Rebecca previously served as the Vera Institute of Justice’s founding Policing Program Director. Prior to that position, she served as Director of Research, Policy, and Planning for the NYPD. Rebecca has also served as Director of Criminal Justice for the Laura and John Arnold Foundation, Research Associate for the Urban Institute’s Justice Policy Center, Director of Criminal Justice Programs for The Doe Fund, Senior Analyst for the NYC Office of Management and Budget, and Deputy Director of Planning for the Center for Employment Opportunities.

Rebecca holds several appointments, including trustee of Friends of Island Academy, a nonprofit organization that supports and brings opportunity to youth during and after their time in New York City jails; Research Advisory Board member of the Police Executive Research Forum; and Research Advisory Committee member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Rebecca holds a PhD in Criminal Justice from John Jay College of the Graduate Center, City University of New York, an MS in Urban Policy Analysis and Management from the Milano Graduate School of the New School University, and a BA in Sociology from Chapman University

Lorne Runnels
Lorne Runnels is the Director of Organizing for BlackRoots Alliance. Lorne is a seasoned political organizer after spending much of his career in mortgage financing he returned to the work that was most important to him, providing equitable access to the Black community. His most recent role was as a State Director for one of the largest national coalitions of labor unions that supported his goals in mentoring future leaders.
Lorne has built his career of Black outreach and the understanding and adoption of holistic organizing to realize the necessity of a dynamic change. Lorne has spearheaded components of elections in not only local elections but statewide elections. He has worked in roles on electoral and advocacy and issue-based campaigns in Washington, DC, and Philadelphia. Lorne has also served as a organizer and director, overseeing outreach efforts, and coordinated with local leadership to build relationships within communities and increase member engagement, mobilization and victories. His passion for organizing and campaigns led him back to Chicago where he is excited to return to the work. He is dedicated to the efforts required for the Black liberation in his own backyard of Chicago, Illinois.