U.S. Government Moves to Stop Illinois City’s Race-Based Reparations Program

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday asked a federal judge to halt Evanston, Illinois from making further payments under the country’s first local reparations program. The filing argues that the program violates the Equal Protection Clause by distributing benefits based on race. Officials said race-based payments are not a lawful way to address past discrimination.

Evanston launched the program in 2021 using revenue from a local tax on legal marijuana sales. It has paid $25,000 grants to hundreds of Black residents whose families lived in the city between 1919 and 1969. The money can be used for home repairs, down payments, and property-related penalties.

The city set aside $20 million for the effort and has already distributed more than $7 million. Residents of any race who faced housing discrimination after 1969 were also eligible under the original rules.

Attorneys representing six plaintiffs filed suit against the city in May 2024. They argue that applicants did not have to prove they suffered specific harm from city policies.

A local alderwoman who helped create the program called the federal intervention a tactic meant to discourage other cities from starting similar efforts.

“Evanston has set a new precedent. It has shown that racial reparations are possible." — Robin Rue Simmons, alderwoman, April 2021 The same alderwoman said past city policies such as redlining limited Black residents’ access to jobs, healthcare, and education. An attorney for the plaintiffs countered that earlier reparations programs tied payments to documented, individual harm rather than race alone.”