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Dear Evanston, Please read, share and take to heart this statement by Michele Hays, founder and admin of Back On Their Feet - Evanston. "Struggling families and elders are worse off now than during the shutdown. I know many of you know that I administrate a mutual aid group: it gives me a bird's eye view of how things are for people working in jobs most of us don't want to do. I really need to you to understand that things are very, very bleak. Last year, and even during the Trump administration, everyone suddenly understood how difficult it is to get access to housing, food, clothing, transportation and childcare. Mutual Aid groups bloomed across social media and poised themselves to address these problems. Unfortunately, now that things are better for those of us who have safe homes and an income, all of that aid has dried up. There is some limited Federal aid for rent, and the same broken systems we've always had, but the change in the weather has brought 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 than we ever had before. Our group can only manage one fundraiser at a time - right now, requests are stacked five deep for support with emergency housing, help with transportation, and we have a constant stream of requests for basic groceries for families under quarantine. The local systems providing for those things during the shutdown are now gone or too overloaded to help. I AM BEGGING. I'm doing what I can to get out information on who needs what, but I'm limited. If you are personally not in dire straits, I am asking every one of you to set aside some money each week for a local GoFundMe of your choosing. It really doesn't matter if it's been "vetted" or not (GFM does have a system where you can ask questions if a fundraiser doesn't look right to you.) At this point, GFM is the only resource some people have to stay housed, fed, clothed, safe, and able to work. Back On Their Feet always has our latest fundraiser pinned at the top of the page, and we do ask for your generosity - but many of the people who we've asked to wait have created fundraisers on their own. Please also look for those by searching "Evanston, IL" (or wherever you live: this is a national and probably international problem right now) on GoFundMe's website. Please also contact your elected officials at the State and National level and ask that more financial support be made available with fewer restrictions. It's not just individuals and hospitals suffering under the weight of the Omicron wave, it's small businesses and schools, too. We need to think about how best to get the resources to those who need them the fastest way possible. My heart is breaking for all the people we can't help. Please." —- Michele Hays

Today was a momentous and historic day in Evanston, and in the nation. The "Evanston 16" -- the first 16 Evanston residents (and the first residents in the nation) to receive municipal reparations were picked by lottery at a Reparations Committee meeting this morning that was held virtually from the Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center. This is the first compensatory redress initiative for local reparations in the country, and these 16 residents will receive $25,000 reparative housing payments. Numbers were read out by Reparations Committee members Hon. Robin Rue Simmons, Carlis Sutton, Bonnie Lockhart, Councilmember Peter Braithwaite(2nd ward), and Dino Robinson, founder Shorefront Legacy Center. "For the first time since reconstruction days after the Civil War, a government agency is participating in a process that will make this a more perfect union and more inclusive for all citizens of the United States of America," said Carlis Sutton before the drawing. "Is this a perfect process? No. No first time effort ever is. But we can truthfully say no other community, no other state, no other agency in government has gone this far. So before you start criticizing us, I suggest that you follow the lead that we've set." Many Evanston residents tuned into the meeting from home. "This is a time of joy," former 5th ward City Councilmember Delores Holmes, who has been involved in the initiative from the start, commented in the chat. "I'm so proud of Evanston. I can't believe how emotional this is." Karli Butler, a third-generation Black Evanstonian wrote, "I'm so sad that my granddad couldn't be here to witness this." Her grandfather had received a lottery number but passed away just a few weeks ago at the age of 95. "Congratulations to our precious ancestors ... glorious day," wrote Kathryn Jackson-Bradley. "Evanston has become a beacon of hope for the entire country to follow," said Gerald Johnson. Read more about this morning's historic events in the Evanston Patch. In the meantime, if you're a white Evanston resident, head up a white-led or predominantly white business or organization, or belong to a predominantly white faith-based organization in Evanston, we strongly encourage you to contribute--as an individual or as an organization--to one or both of Evanston's Reparations funds. -- Reparations Stakeholder Authority of Evanston fund held at the Evanston Community Foundation. -- City of Evanston fund. Here are the lottery numbers that were announced. Coinciding with the selection of restorative housing funds, several articles were published in the media. Hera are a couple from Crain's Chicago Business: When Evanston ‘accepted the need to address its historical wrongs' An editorial by Pastor Michael Nabors Can reparations in Evanston really solve its wealth gap? With its first-in-the-nation reparations program, the city made history. The question now is if the promised $10 million can actually shore up Black wealth.

Dear Evanston, I don't know a person who didn't admire the late Zollie Webb, pastor of Friendship Baptist Church of Evanston for 38 years. I got to know Pastor Webb over the past four years or so because I am a huge fan of Evanston Sings. That's the annual Gospel concert he founded and helped spearhead every year through Evanston Own It, and which I have consistently promoted for the beauty of the music and singing by the choir that comprises members of Evanston's 5th ward churches (and anyone else who wants to join) and because it raises funds for the crucial Mayor's Youth Summer Employment Program. Over that period of time, I discovered just how much Pastor Webb supported the Evanston community, particularly its young men. During his life, Pastor Webb adopted three sons and fostered 54 others! He was the epitome of a quiet hero, someone who had an enormous impact on many, many lives but who was not recognized nearly enough by our community at large (I'm talking here particularly about white Evanston residents) -- or by the nation, for that matter. Pastor Webb passed away at the age of 68 on September 4, 2021. I'll write a longer post about him soon, but in the meantime, I want to share this video that I put together right at the end of last year to honor his memory and legacy. Please note: you'll notice that the quality of some of the video is not as professional as it should be -- and I'm looking forward to purchasing and learning to use far better video and audio equipment soon. I hope my amateur skills don't detract from the powerful testimonies of his sons, community leaders, religious leaders, and all the many, many people who called him friend. Thank you to Pastor Monté for allowing me to use footage from Pastor Webb's funeral service that was held at First Church of God Christian Life Center and for everyone who spoke to me about this phenomenal human being. Thanks to Sharon Walker and Yvette Shelby for helping to bring people together to talk to me. Pastor Webb will be sorely missed.

To ensure that all community members can access and enjoy Evanston's public swimming beaches, the City will provide free admission for all Evanston residents seven days a week during the 2022 season. You can help support free access to Evanston beaches by donating to the City's Beach Operations Fund. With the elimination of daily and seasonal beach admission fees/tokens for Evanston residents in 2022, your contribution will help support beach operations and ensure Evanston beaches are safe, beautiful, and accessible for all residents.

Flashback to Jan. 1, 2019 when weed became legal in Illinois and Medmen (now Zenleaf at 1804 Maple) opened for business. Remember if you use recreational cannabis, purchase it in Evanston and 3% of the tax from your purchase goes to the City's reparations fund. There's a high likelihood additional dispensaries will locate in Evanston soon. Hopeful, healthy new year to everyone!

Everyone is invited to a national town hall meeting about building a local reparations movement! Invited guests include Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and actor/humanitarian Danny Glover. The Town Hall is sponsored by National African American Reparations Commission - NAARC and Evanston-based FirstRepair founded by former 5th ward City Council member Robin Rue Simmons. NAARC Commission Members are: Robin Rue Simmons, Founder/Executive Director, FirstRepair Kamm Howard, National Co-Chair, N’COBRA Dr. Julianne Malveaux, Inaugural Dean, Ethnic Studies Dept., Cal State, LA Nkechi Taifa, Esq. Author, Black Power Lawyer Dr. Ron Daniels, Convener, National African American Reparations Commission The event will take place at First Church of God Christian Life Center, 1524 Simpson Street, Evanston. It will also be live-streamed. Watch the live-stream at IBW21.org or reparationscomm.org. OR watch on Facebook. Register for in-person attendance here. Find out more about NAARC. To learn more about Evanston's Reparations Initiative, Contribute to the Evanston Reparations Community Fund held by the Evanston Community Foundation and administered by the Reparations Stakeholders Authority of Evanston. Watch DE footage from the first Evanston Reparations Town Hall, which took place December 19, 2019: For questions and inquiries email or call 847-448-4311.

Each year since the Sandy Hook shooting in December 2012, People for a Safer Society has held a memorial service for victims of gun violence. This year, the event will take place from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 3637 Golf Road, Evanston. Evanston has experienced six homicides by gun this year alone --please come out to remember the victims and support their families. Register here. The program will include speakers from a variety of organizations, families of victims, and elected officials. There'll also be live music. The NCJW - National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore Section, Mothers Against Community Gun Violence - MACGV, and the Evanston/North Shore Branch NAACP are co-sponsors of the event. If you're not able to attend, you may also join the program virtually by attending a webinar (register here) or live-streaming it from NCJW Facebook page. NCJW is also collecting books to donate to local children and young adults who are coping with the trauma of gun violence. The books will be donated through MACGV Chicago's grief support groups. Click here for the list of books to donate and links to local booksellers. Books may be ordered through this link or brought to the vigil: .

Well, a fourth-grade Evanston boy wanted kids with loved ones who are incarcerated to be able to just that, and in the process of making it happen, he and his mom reached out and touched many other Evanstonians too. Karli Butler encourages her son Zailen Siner to do something kind for someone every day -- and to keep it to himself. She tells him that it's between him and God. Last week, Zailen, 10, told Karli, who is a fifth-generation Evanstonian and Program Officer at the Evanston Community Foundation, that he wanted to help local kids keep in touch with their loved ones who are incarcerated. He offered $50 of his savings. Karli, moved by this kind deed, matched his donation. "We personally know the challenges of keeping in touch with incarcerated loved ones," Karli says. "The calls can get expensive, but there are benefits to maintaining healthy contact, when it's appropriate." Phone and video calls are an expense to families that may already be on fixed budgets. "We pay about $25 every two weeks for phone calls and Zailen gets a couple calls throughout the week," Karli says. "The video calls are a separate expense at $6.25 each." Karli says Zailen is fortunate to get so much contact and he knows it. "His loved ones are too far to actually visit, and with Covid, most in-person visits have been completely stopped," Karli says. "We also don't have challenges paying our phone bill or wireless internet, which is required to maintain contact for phone or video calls. I am happy for the families to use the cards as they see fit." Soon, Karli and Zailen decided to expand their idea beyond just the two of them so more Evanston kids and families could be supported this way. That's when Karli realized that this kind deed would need to be shared not only with God, but with the community. "Initially, he wasn't happy with me sharing," Karli tells me. "I had to explain that this was a special situation in that we needed to connect to families who could use the money for the calls AND sometimes you share your efforts to touch the hearts of others and give them an opportunity to support a cause that's meaningful to them." Karli took to Facebook and asked friends to support Zailen's vision. She also reached out to Stacey Moragne Sr., who has been an outreach worker with the City's Youth and Young Adult Division for eight years, because he has insight into Evanston families who could use the help. Last Friday, thanks to Stacey's help identifying families and generous donations in response to Karli's request, Zailen dropped off $525 worth of Visa gift cards to help five Evanston kids talk or video-chat with loved ones without worrying about the cost. "It's not something people talk about here, but we know Evanston isn't exempt," Karli says. "And because I've worked in direct service, I preferred to give the cards to Stacey so that he could give them to the kids and their families. We didn't want to be invasive or make them feel like they owe us anything." Stacey, an ex-offender himself, has deep knowledge about needs in the community. "I know from hearing on the streets, from being in the community, and staying in tune with social media," Stacey says. "It's my business to know." Stacey says he was blown away when Karli shared Zailen's idea. "I think it is magnificent," he says. "It's selfless and caring and compassionate. For a young man of his age to be willing to give to individuals that he doesn't know--I think it's spectacular. You got to be real mature to have that thinking capacity." As for Karli, who is a single mom, Stacey says, "I have enormous respect for her and moms like her who give their kids undivided attention." In a Facebook post to everyone who donated by Friday, Karli wrote, "This was personal for my boy, so I'm grateful for the encouragement and support. I'm honestly not sure [Zailen] believes that what he's done is all that special, but I think it is. See, we believe that good deeds should be between yourself and God, but this one was worth sharing to get the funds to the right people. And who knows, this might just be the start of something special." Zailen, whose beloved great-grandfather passed away last week at age 94, says simply, "This is in memory of my gramp. Just be kind." If you'd like to support Zailen's outstanding work, email Karli to discuss how to get the funds to her. Facebook PM's to her are fine too. She's able to receive Zelle or Cash-App, and she and Zailen will pick up cash or checks as well. Please note that each $50 gift card costs $4.95 to purchase (Karli has so far paid for the gift cards herself) so consider adding that small cost to your donation. NOTE: this is Karli and Zailen's personal effort and is not affiliated in any way with ECF.

The James B. Moran Center for Youth Advocacy announced yesterday that it will expand its Education Advocacy Program (“EAP”) to Chicago's Rogers Park to further disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. Moran Center’s EAP Rogers Park Project, a two-year pilot program, will provide free educational advocacy and restorative justice to students living in and/or attending school in Rogers Park. The program is supported through an Equal Justice Works fellowship sponsored by Nike, Inc. The Moran Center EAP advocates to ensure that children with special needs, learning disabilities, mental health challenges, and/or traumatic experiences receive an equitable education with the support and services they deserve. EAP attorneys have represented low-income students who live in and/or attend school in Evanston, and with the launch of the Rogers Park Project, students living in and/or attending school in Rogers Park will also be eligible for the program. The Moran Center’s legal services are free to qualified clients, but clients may be responsible for costs and fees associated with the representation, including expert fees, evaluation fees, and filing fees. Applications and information are available on the Moran Center’s website at moran-center.org. Patrick Keenan-Devlin, Moran Center's executive director, said that this expansion demonstrates the need for programs like EAP. “The Moran Center exists to advocate for young people who may not have anyone else to help them, and this program can help avert a serious crisis for young people with special needs whose families are already struggling to make ends meet," he said. "EAP was designed specifically to provide support for students who are experiencing difficulty in school, having issues with their special education services, or facing school exclusion, and we are so pleased to have the opportunity to expand it into the greater Chicago area.” The project will be led by the Moran Center’s Equal Justice Works fellow, Andy Froelich. Andy has worked as an education advocate at the Moran Center since 2020 and recently graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. Throughout law school, Andy advocated for children in education, child protection, and domestic relations matters through his work with Loyola’s ChildLaw Clinic and Stand Up For Each Other Chicago (SUFEO).

Each year since the Sandy Hook shooting in December 2012, People for a Safer Society has held a memorial service for victims of gun violence. This year, the event will take place from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 3637 Golf Road, Evanston. Evanston has experienced six homicides by gun this year alone --please come out to remember the victims and support their families. Register here. The program will include speakers from a variety of organizations, families of victims, and elected officials. There'll also be live music. The NCJW - National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore Section, Mothers Against Community Gun Violence - MACGV, and the Evanston/North Shore Branch NAACP are co-sponsors of the event. If you're not able to attend, you may also join the program virtually by attending a webinar (register here) or live-streaming it from NCJW Facebook page. NCJW is also collecting books to donate to local children and young adults who are coping with the trauma of gun violence. The books will be donated through MACGV Chicago's grief support groups. Click here for the list of books to donate and links to local booksellers. Books may be ordered through this link or brought to the vigil.

As many of you know, Evanston’s own Liana L Renee Wallace, Evanston Township High School grad, is a contestant on CBS' Survivor this season. Watch and listen to her powerful words from last night's episode! SPOILER ALERT! DON'T READ THE COMMENTS IF YOU'RE NOT CAUGHT UP WITH THE SEASON! #evanston #evanstonil #evanstonillinois #survivor41 #lianawallace #evanstonproud #dearevanston

Beth Emet The Free Synagogue will host Northwestern University Professor kihana miraya ross to speak about the Spencer grant she’s received to study how we can repair historic and current educational justice in Evanston. The event takes place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, December 14. Pre-registration is required. "’In recognizing the debt owed to its Black residents and pledging actual dollars towards repairing centuries of educational inequities, Evanston is in uncharted waters. The world will be watching as the first city in the U.S. to approve reparations embarks on an unparalleled move towards educational justice for its Black residents,' said ross, describing the moment as an unprecedented research opportunity. The project will inform ross' second book and may be the subject of a feature-length documentary.” —Northwestern Now, September 1, 2021 Professor ross is the author of “Anti-Blackness in education and the possibilities of redress: Towards educational reparations,” as well as numerous other articles on educational injustice and Black students. Professor ross received a 2021 Northwestern Racial Equity and Community Partnership grant, supporting a synergistic project to “amplify the voices of Black Evanston residents in devising community-directed redress of ongoing racialized educational harm and inequities.” She is an Assistant Professor of African American Studies at Northwestern with a Ph.D. in Social and Cultural Studies of Education, UC Berkeley (2016), M.A. in Social and Cultural Studies of Education, UC Berkeley, 2011, and a B.A. in African American Studies; Sociology; Education minor, UC Berkeley, 2002 Beth Emet has inviting a number of synagogues and churches to join the presentation as well as Dear Evanston's followers. Pre-registration is required. #bethemet#dearevanston#Reparations#educationreparations#evanston #evanstonillinois #evanstonillinois#ReparationsNow#northwesternuniversity