Stephanie Saunders and her mother bought their house, a Cape Cod style home on Emerson Street, about 21 years ago. They bought it “as is,” and “haven’t been able to afford to really do the full renovation that we’d like to do,” Saunders said. On Aug. 30, Saunders joined about 40 other community members at Fellowship […]
Category: Reparations
Posted inCity News
Northwestern scholar of Black education to study Evanston reparations
The City of Evanston made history and drew international attention in March 2020 when it became the first municipality in the U.S. to agree to pay Black residents reparations, up to $25,000 for those affected by discriminatory housing policies and practices, which the city failed to address until the passage of fair housing laws in the 1960s. […]
Posted inReparations
Reparations Committee meeting, information sessions scheduled
The City of Evanston’s Reparations Committee meets at 9 a.m. today, Sept. 2, at the Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave., in Room G300 (Ground Floor). Meeting agendas are posted 48 hours in advance of the meeting on the Reparations Committee webpage. Upcoming Restorative Housing Program informational sessions are: Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, 1744 Darrow […]
Posted inCity News
Evanston reparations applications open in September
The new City of Evanston Reparations Committee met for the first time Aug. 5 in front of an audience of about 30 people at the Lorraine Morton Civic Center. The new expanded committee consists of three Council members and four community representatives who are tasked with exploring and identifying programs and opportunities to be supported […]
Posted inArt & Life
Juneteenth: A bittersweet holiday
Every Independence Day, I have 30 to 40 family and friends at my house in Evanston for a cookout. I always brag that my menu of chicken rice pilaf with vegetables, grilled fish, turkey burgers, chicken hot links, grilled Brussels sprouts, asparagus, cabbage and baked sweet potatoes is much healthier than the traditional cookout foods […]
Posted inCity News
Four Community Members Appointed to City’s Reparations Committee
Submitted by the City of Evanston On Monday, April 26, the Evanston City Council voted to approve four community members to serve on the City of Evanston’s Reparations Committee, joining Council members from the 2nd, 5th, and 8th Wards. The committee will continue the work started by the Reparations Subcommittee, which is being dissolved. Committee […]
Posted inCity News
New Program Offers Direct Cash to Evanston’s Black Residents
Submitted by the Family Independence Initiative The Family Independence Initiative (FII) on March 22 launched the Evanston Equitable Recovery Fund, a program to provide 25 Evanston qualified residents with a $300 per month payment for 10 months. The $75,000 program is privately funded by the Family Independence Initiative and supported financially by Economic Security for […]
Posted inPublic Square
Council Members Comment on Reparations Vote
The RoundTable invited City Council members to share the statements they made at the March 22 meeting at which aldermen voted 8-1 to approve a resolution on reparations. The statement by Alderman Cicely Fleming, who cast the sole “No” vote, may be found here. Three aldermen – Melissa Wynne, Don Wilson, and Tom Suffredin responded […]
Posted inCity News
E3R’s Reparation Seminar Provides Insight Into Common Ground and Divergence Around Evanston Reparations Program
At 8:50 p.m. on March 22, City Council adopted Resolution 37-R-27 authorizing the implementation of the Evanston Local Reparations Restorative Housing Program and the initial program budget of $400,000. The majority of the public comments at the City Council meeting were in response to Special Order of Business SP3, adoption of the nation’s first local […]
Posted inCity News
Landmark Reparations Proposal Approved By City Council
Evanston City Council members approved a landmark reparations resolution on March 22, setting in motion housing assistance for eligible Black residents to redress some of the injustices they suffered over a half century of discriminatory practices. In an 8-1 vote, aldermen approved the resolution in support of a restorative housing program, which is the first […]