- Pritzker Fellows
- Former Fellows
- Luis Gutiérrez
Luis Gutiérrez
Former U.S. Representative from Illinois
Former Congressman Luis V. Gutiérrez is the founder and President of Our Nation’s Future. In 1992, Congressman Gutiérrez was the first Latino in the Midwest elected to serve as a member of the Illinois delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives. During his 26 years in Congress, he was characterized as an experienced legislator and energetic spokesman on behalf of his constituents in Illinois’ Fourth District and, more notably, as the nation’s most trusted leader on the issue of immigration. Of Puerto Rican descent, he is a supporter of Puerto Rican independence and helped lead the charge to remove the U.S. Navy from the Puerto Rican island of Vieques. Gutiérrez is also an outspoken advocate of workers' rights, LGBT rights, gender equality and other liberal and progressive causes. In 2010, Frank Sharry of America's Voice, an immigration reform advocacy group, said of Gutiérrez, "He's as close as the Latino community has to a Martin Luther King figure." His supporters have given him the nickname El Gallito - the little fighting rooster - in reference to his fiery oratory and political prowess.
In 1983, Gutiérrez left his job working for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services to run for Democratic Committeeman for Chicago’s 32nd ward against a longtime incumbent. Though Gutiérrez lost the election, it did not stop him from continuing the fight for working-class Chicagoans.
In 1984, Harold Washington, Chicago’s first African American Mayor, appointed Gutiérrez to his administration, recognizing his ability to build coalitions between Chicago’s working-class residents.
As alderman, Gutiérrez always pushed progressive and liberal agendas. He was a strong advocate for local economic development and the construction of affordable housing. Gutiérrez was a key figure in passing the 1986 gay rights ordinance, which sought to ban discrimination based upon gender & sexual orientation.
In 1992, Gutiérrez was elected to the United State House of Representatives for Illinois’ 4th Congressional District. As Congressman, Gutiérrez was known for his passion and dedication to immigration reform. He was nationally recognized for his tireless leadership in championing issues of particular importance to Latino and immigrant communities. He has been at the center of every major legislative debate on immigration reform and immigration issues for more than two decades.
Congressman Gutierrez played an instrumental role in advocating for executive action by President Obama to provide deportation relief to certain long-term undocumented immigrants and their families. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that protects some immigrants brought to the U.S. as children from deportation - and a series of executive actions announced in 2014 - are the result of Congressman Gutiérrez’s consistent and persistent advocacy in Washington. Beyond advocating for these initiatives, the Congressman has worked hard in Chicago and around the country to work with immigrants to apply for these deportation protections that keep families together.
Today, Gutiérrez is focused on continuing his fight for working-class Americans across the country. Though he is no longer in office, the fight for economic, social, racial, and immigrant justice is far from over. As a Latino man raised in a working-class family, he remains determined to continue to fight for all Americans.
Seminars
"From the Barrio to Capitol Hill"
In a career that has taken me from the Barrio to Capitol Hill, from working as a Chicago cab driver to Chicago City Councilman to U.S. Congressman, I have always fought for civil rights. In these seminars, we will explore various aspects of that fight, through stories and examples from my journey of learning about and building power for workers, or the Latino community, for the marginalized. We will look at coalition-building, at the strange bedfellows of politics - when to compromise and when to speak truth to power. We will analyze how policy is made, and we will discuss lessons learned along the way from both successes and failures. And we will explore the roots of today’s progressive movement through my lived experience in the Civil Rights movement of the 60s and into the 70s. And at the center of it all is my life’s work to move the needle on immigration reform, since I believe immigration rights are civil rights - and we will talk about the work still ahead.
Why do we call Puerto Rico the last colony, and how does it feel? With 4 million Puerto Ricans living on the mainland, and 3 million in Puerto Rico, what does the future look like? Can Puerto Rico be a State? Is a progressive movement towards statehood politically or demographically possible? Is it possible to create a treaty of friendship and solidarity between the people of P.R. and the U.S.? Is independence possible in our current global environment? Can we envision something different?
Special Guest: José E. López, Executive Director of The Puerto Rican Cultural Center & Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago
We will look at the misinformation and disinformation surrounding immigration. Through a series of case studies, we will examine how it poisons the debate on immigration reform and how to counter it.
Special Guest: Douglas Rivlin, Director of Communications for America's Voice and America's Voice Education Fund & former Communications Director and Deputy Chief of Staff for Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez
What does race mean to Latinos, and how do they express it? We’ll discuss the racist and homophobic comments of the LA City Council and what they exposed. As racial consciousness rises around the country, what does colorism look like within the Latino community? What conversations are being held, and what conversations need to be held? How have some of these conversations played out right here in the Chicago City Council? Where do we go from here?
Special Guest: Juan Ochoa, President & CEO of Miramar Group and former CEO of MPEA (Owner-Operator of McCormick Place and Navy Pier)
Special Guest: Susan Collins, Senior Director of Legislative Affairs at UnidosUS & Co-Author of the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005
In Chris Matthews’ classic “Hardball,” he reveals how the game is played - the dirty tricks and raw ambition, the savvy manipulations and the bitter rivalries that pervade politics. While not quite the Bible, it's a pretty good preface, and I’ll talk about my own experiences in the arena with a focus on some of the tough lessons I learned in Chicago and DC politics.
I was born in Jim Crow America and came of age in the Civil Rights era. Along the way, I was learned about my biases and confronted my own prejudices through a career in city and national politics. My political career also paralleled the rise of Latino power in Chicago and nationally, and I was privileged to work with Harold Washington, the first Black mayor of Chicago, and the first Black President of the United States. We’ll talk about how these experiences and insights helped me set priorities as a legislator.
In this seminar, I’ll tell you some stories you won’t read in my biography - including how protesting in front of the White House led to being chastised by the President in the Roosevelt Room - and what I did next. We’ll discuss seven years of my relationship with President Obama.