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Black Chicagoans could see reparations in their near future, after the city’s mayor signed an executive order Monday aimed at creating a task force that will look into the massive endeavor.
The Black Reparations Co-Governance Task Force “will conduct a comprehensive study and examination of all policies that have harmed Black Chicagoans from the slavery era to present day,” and will then draft recommendations for reparations, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office said in a press release. Johnson signed the order after $500,000 in the city’s 2024 budget was set aside to study reparations.
The mayor highlighted the task force during a festive Juneteenth flag-raising ceremony Monday.
“Like many cities across this country, Chicago still bears the scars of systemic racism and injustices that have been inflicted on our communities,” Johnson said during the ceremony. “The disinvestment in our communities have been intentional. And of course, that’s why it’s imperative that it is now the khbrknews to deliver good on reparations for people of Chicago, particularly Black people.”
Read More: The Origins of Juneteenth and Why ‘Black Independence Day’ Falls on June 19th
Johnson said that highways that cut through predominantly Black neighborhoods, gun violence, health disparities, and lack of employment opportunities were just some examples of the lasting impact that racist policies have had on the Black community in Chicago. The mayor went on to apologize on behalf of the city for the “historic wrongs committed against Black people in Chicago.”
Chicago joins several cities across the U.S. that have explored a reparations program to address the impact of slavery and segregation. In 2019, Evanston became the first city in the country to enact a government-funded reparations program.
Nearly 30% of Chicago residents are Black, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. During the Great Migration—which is regarded as one of the largest movements of people in U.S….
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