Illinois city expanding its $10 million reparations program
Jack Birle
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The city of Evanston, Illinois, voted to expand its reparations program and will now allow direct cash payments to eligible residents.
The $10 million reparations program, which aims to remedy past discriminatory housing policies in the city, was initially approved in March 2021.
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“I just want to highlight how special Evanston is. Tonight, we passed what I believe is a historic amendment to our reparations program. It was just on the consent agenda, and there’s no fuss, no folks coming out, you know, protesting. No dissent amongst the council,” City Councilmember Devon Reid said after the Monday vote, per CNN.
“This will allow us to get funding to our ancestors in a much more expedient fashion. We will be able to get that money out to folks and be able to provide some repair to our black community and to the harmed community who has suffered from uh housing discrimination,” Reid added per the outlet.
The grants of up to $25,000 were given to black residents who lived in Evanston from 1919-1969. Money also went to their descendants and is geared toward helping pay for renovations, down payments, and mortgages. The Monday vote expands the grants by allowing them to be cash payments.
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Evanston, which is located just north of Chicago, is one of the more high-profile jurisdictions to distribute reparations to its black residents, but the city of San Francisco is looking into a reparations program.
The San Francisco program would give black residents of the city $5 million payments along with other benefits. The benefits would include the elimination of personal debt and tax burdens, guaranteed annual incomes of at least $97,000 for the next 250 years, and homes in the city for $1 per family. The final proposal is set to be announced in June.