The world can always use more civility. 

Chuck Hughes, president and CEO of the Gary Chamber of Commerce, driven by lessons learned through decades of public service, stepped forward to make it happen.

He came up with World Civility Day, held annually on the second Thursday in April. 

The eighth iteration of the event, featuring workshops, an awards dinner and a celebration of the Golden Rule, is scheduled for April 11, 2024.

Over the years, thousands of people have come together to consider the virtue of treating one another, and our world, with care and courtesy. 

Read on to learn more about the world’s largest celebration of civility.

Editor’s Note: The following conversation has been condensed and edited. 

NBA.com: How did World Civility Day come about?

Chuck Hughes: I looked at what was going around in the world, things that were happening. There was turmoil all over the country; there was domestic abuse; there was bullying; there was violence. There was discourse among colleagues and friends. I saw what was happening in every area of our society — education, politics, religion, sports, you name it.

It was the thought that we should do something from an awareness standpoint — we could have an impact, without imposing on anyone or requiring a financial obligation. It was something that was nonpartisan – and just needed, and necessary, for everyone.

So I decided to throw it out to my board (at the Gary Chamber Of Commerce). And from that point, it expanded across the country.

Why did you feel this was needed? Why is this important?

A lot of it was personal. I’m a retired public safety official — 34 years. I was also a public servant — City Councilman for 16 years. I’ve stood with the community; I’ve had an impact on people. I’ve seen success and joy, but I’ve also seen human suffering.

If you’re a person who’s in tune to what’s going on in this country, and the lives of people, it should compel anyone to see how you can make a difference. I was motivated and stimulated from that perspective.

How has the event evolved over the years?

We certainly started before, it seems, the world took a terrible turn for the worse. This is our eighth annual World Civility Day. When you consider the fact that it’s been perpetual — that tells me it’s making a difference. We’ve been able to garner partners from all over the place — local media, we’ve been featured in some of the Chicago media, and now we’re having a conversation with the NBA.

Quantitatively, we know it’s making a difference in the lives of some people.

What sort of progress have you seen?

When I see people, they sometimes characterize me and say “Hey, there’s Mr. Civility!” And in my mind, I’m saying “Yeah, yeah, it’s working, it’s permeating society.”

We’ve also involved a lot of our young people. In fact, one of our school systems incorporated a curriculum about civility.

We do workshops during World Civility Day — a lot of school systems bring their students, and we designate them as student ambassadors.

The only criteria is that the workshop has something to do with civility and kindness. Our local hospital, Methodist Hospital, has had people come in and discuss civility under traumatic circumstances; we’ve had folks come in and do anti-bullying workshops.

Whoever comes in, they can cater their workshop to however they want to deliver the message. It can come from their community, corporate, business, personal perspective. 

So we’re hitting it on all fronts, from the young folks to some of us that are not quite as young. 

For all of us, in every genre, in every walk of life, there’s a need for more civility – including me.

The young people encounter [that need] more than we do, and the young people are less equipped to deal with it. 

Social media has been a beast to young people. We have all these teen suicides; we hear about kids that have been bullied in their schools, in their communities.

Those of us who are in responsible positions, if we’re not making any effort at all — or every effort that we possibly can — to make the quality of life for these young people, we’re failing them.

We try to engage them; we try to be those father and mother, patriarchal and matriarchal, figures that we should be for them.

And we’re having young leaders emerge from this. We’re having young people with the courage to say “Hey, I’m going to speak with my peers about this.”

What are we losing, when we lose our feel for civility? What do you hope to gain by bringing awareness to this issue?

What we’re losing, really, is our society. We’re losing the human element that’s involved – the compassion we should have for one another as individuals. 

I think that’s what is eroding, clearly.

As we build I’m delighted that we’re gaining partners – the thought process is there.

I’m just hoping that, through this opportunity, people will be able to see the importance of this – particularly those who have a stronger voice than I do. We need people who can impact the mindset of young people.

I’m out here, and we’re offering it. We’re hoping this is a wonderful stepping stone to move in the direction we need to help people.

It’s not about us; it’s not about the Chamber of Commerce; it’s not about me coming up with the notion. It’s about impacting the lives of people, governments, homes, locker rooms — everywhere.

What do you hope people take away from learning about this?

That this issue has been on the back-burner in our minds – that this is something we really need to think about. That people will look at this and say, “Maybe that’s why I’m having the discord in my house or my relationships, maybe that’s why my child and I are not connecting, maybe that’s why we’re seeing events that are contradictory to how we should live as citizens.”

It’s an awareness campaign. 

If one person becomes aware, and they share that with their family, with someone else, then, exponentially, this thing will spread, and it will make a difference — and I think it has.