Our Core Values
- Chicago Survivors believes that no one deserves to be physically injured, threatened, intimidated or killed by violence in their home or community.
- We serve all survivors regardless of age, race, ethnicity or immigrant status, gender, sexual orientation or expression, religion, education, socioeconomic status or personal history.
- We value survivors’ perspectives, experience, and leadership in shaping and delivering its services. We respect and encourages the autonomy of survivors in making decisions about their care.
- We serve the family as a whole and its individual members because families are the essential human community.
- We believe that a compassionate response to survivors is an essential part of violence prevention and must include trauma-informed systems and professionals and a trauma-informed general public.
- Surviving family members of victims lost to homicide are considered crime victims by law and are entitled to protection and services under the law.
- We are committed to cooperation with law enforcement, with the understanding that our first responsibility is to care for survivors’ needs and to respect survivor autonomy.
Our Mission
- Offer crisis intervention, supportive counseling and comprehensive referral services to surviving family members of Chicago homicide victims;
- Work collaboratively to provide training in sensitive and effective communication with and treatment of victim’ families to law enforcement, court personnel, medical examiner’s office, emergency rooms and other systems family members interact with in the aftermath of homicide;
- Foster a Community of Survivors to promote peer-to-peer empathy, support, education and healing from one another, and to contribute to anti-violence work through their collective voice and experience.
Crisis Helpline: 877.863.6338
It’s free and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can also get help by calling our office at (312) 488.9222.