Evanston’s Reparations Committee announced at its Thursday morning meeting that it will host a special event for direct descendant beneficiaries in January, at which the order of grant disbursements will be randomly selected.
The event, set for Jan. 11, will include food from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m., public comments and more. It will likely take place in the auditorium of Evanston Township High School, Council Member Krissie Harris (2nd Ward) said.
Harris said a “libation statement” will be given before a historical video of the committee is shown, followed by music, then the random selection process. All descendants, Harris added, will be sent event details by mail, including their unique ID numbers.
Evanston’s reparations program
The City of Evanston committed to local reparations in a November 2019 City Council resolution, and the Restorative Housing Program, intended to address the city’s history of discriminatory housing practices, was passed in March 2021. The program offers $25,000 grants to eligible Black residents of Evanston. Money from a tax on recreational marijuana sales and the city’s real estate transfer tax help to fund the grants.
The housing program has three categories of eligible recipients: Ancestors, who lived in the city as adults between 1919 and 1969 and so were affected by city policies enforcing and encouraging racial redlining; direct descendants of a Black city resident who lived here between 1919 and 1969; and residents who submitted evidence they suffered housing discrimination due to the city after 1969. About 600 people submitted applications to receive grants before the November 2021 deadline.
Ancestor recipients were prioritized due to their advanced age. The order of grant disbursements to the ancestor applicants was determined in a public random drawing in January 2022. Evanston has paid out roughly $2.2 million in reparations to ancestors so far, according to a city memo at the Reparation Committee’s October 2023 meeting.
Tasheik Kerr, assistant to the city manager, wrote in a memo presented Thursday that as of Dec. 1 the city has met with 114 of the 139 qualified ancestors. The committee is now turning its attention to the next category of recipients.
Panel seeks to spread word about January event
Of the nearly 500 verified direct descendants, Harris estimated Thursday that roughly 200 will attend the Jan. 11 event.
“We did do a poll asking people if they would come in person, and [most of] the 500 are not attending.”
During the meeting, Committee Chair Robin Rue Simmons asked those in attendance at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center to help spread the word and get the message out to the public.
Update on new cannabis dispensary
Evanston Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak provided an update on the status of Okay Cannabis and West Town Bakery. The marijuana dispensary and bakery combination, which will be located on the northwest corner of Chicago Avenue and Howard Street, is slated to open in early 2024.
“That’s a vague date,” Zalmezak said. “I will tell you it’s early in the year. … West Town Bakery is going to the liquor commission tomorrow [Friday] to seek approval for a liquor license.”
Harris called the update “very exciting.”
“This is how we would generate and get our funding out to our descendants,” Harris said. “That’s so important, and we had COVID slow us down.”
I am a direct descendant.
Lorrie Hampton sixty seven years old family. Grandparents William and Lois Lee, deceased darrow avenue . Barbara Hampton My mother Catherine hampton great grandmother on 1007 emerson
Mother. Reply
I am a defendant’s 86 years old
My family the Peak family was in Evanston before I was born my grands were mixed white my mom
Deceased was Ruby Peak Taylor
I am direct descendent
Barbara Archer. 86 years old
The peak family have lived in Evanston way before I was born
My mom Ruby Peak Taylor is deceased!