Aislinn Pulley

Co-executive Director, Chicago Torture Justice Center

Aislinn Pulley works toward healing for survivors and communities impacted by police violence in a practice that is survivor-led and built on shared power.

Hired on as director of programs in 2018, she was asked to step into the position of co-executive director at the organization in January 2019. The Chicago Torture Justice Center seeks to address the traumas of police violence and institutionalized racism through access to healing and wellness services, trauma-informed resources, and community connection. Aislinn has an unwavering commitment to this work and a belief in building shared leadership models as a necessary component of collective healing and transformative justice. A founding member of Black Lives Matter’s local Chicago chapter, Aislinn helped to bring the nationwide impact of racial justice work home to Chicago in response to the murder of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Ferguson police in Missouri. She was also a part of We Charge Genocide, an intergenerational Chicago-based collective that exposed the racial disparities in violence committed by Chicago police and, in 2014, sent a delegation of youth leaders to the United Nations Committee Against Torture in Geneva, Switzerland. Aislinn and her collaborators with We Charge Genocide pushed an intergenerational, international dialogue around the human rights violations and violent oppression people of color experienced at the hands of police in Chicago.

Aislinn’s relationships and collaborations with movement leaders around the country continues to connect Chicago Torture Justice Center’s work to broader dialogues around reparations and transformative justice. She approaches mental health support that is connected to political organizing for systemic change, free and broadly accessible, and affirming. She holds criticisms of Chicago in constant tension with a deep love for this city, and a clear commitment to her communities.