The Evanston City Council voted to compensate African-American residents of the city who have been subjected to housing discrimination. (Evanston City Hall Facebook)
The Evanston City Council voted 8-1 to award up to $25,000 in compensation to African-American residents who experienced housing discrimination in the city between 1919 and 1969.
The city is located on the north side of Chicago, and is also Home to the famous Northwestern University campus. The city plans to begin accepting applications as soon as this summer.
According to historical research documents, the city once restricted African-American residents from living in the triangle between the North Shore Canal, Union Pacific railroad and Church Street, and the city council just passed a compensation bill that states Discriminatory housing policies and practices have harmed the African-American population of the City of Evanston.
In 2019, the City of Evanston passed a resolution to establish a compensation fund, which will receive $10 million from marijuana sales tax and public donations to fund compensation.
Cicely L. Fleming, the only city council member to vote against the compensation, said that while she supported the payout, she felt it was inadequate and did not provide African-American residents with the right to decide how to use the funds themselves.
Rather than having the government dictate what African-Americans can do with the money and how they can receive it, Fleming said, the city should respect the right of African-Americans to make their own choices and allow those who receive the money to decide how to use it, rather than restricting them to spending it on housing projects.
Rose Cannon, an African-American resident who has lived in the city for generations, said she does not own a home and that the compensation must be used for housing because “we need cash more than we need mortgage assistance.
Councilman Peter Braithwaite said the fund has $10 million and direct cash compensation may be added to the program next.
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