Illinois City Issues $25,000 in Cash to Black Residents for Reparations
More than a million dollars will soon be doled out to black residents of Evanston, Illinois, under the city’s reparations program.
Evanston’s Reparations Committee announced last week that 44 people will be getting $25,000 each, for a total of $1.1 million, according to the Chicago Tribune.
All 44 are descendants of individuals who qualify under the city’s program that pays out reparations to black residents who claimed they experienced housing discrimination between 1919 and 1969.
The payments are intended to be used for housing expenses, Cynthia Vargas, Evanston’s communications and community engagement manager, said.
Through Jan. 31, the city has received $276,588 for the Reparations Fund from its real estate transfer tax. The city’s Cannabis Retailers Occupation Tax, which by state edict does not share amounts, also kicks in to the fund.
No private donations have been reported to fund the program.
To keep the cash flowing, the city is debating putting a tax on Delta-8 THC products such as gummies or vapes.
Second Ward Councilmember Krissie Harris noted that the city is not holding back on cash to those who qualify, but it has to wait until it has the revenue to spend.
Evanston made history by being the first city to pass a reparations plan.
It set a goal of handing out $10 million over a decade to black residents, according to Fox News.
Judicial Watch has sued the city over the program, saying it violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
In its lawsuit, Judicial Watch argued that the “program’s use of a race-based eligibility requirement is presumptively unconstitutional, and remedying societal discrimination is not a compelling government interest.”
“Nor has remedying discrimination from as many as 105 years ago or remedying intergenerational discrimination ever been recognized as a compelling government interest,” the lawsuit said.
Evanston dumps another $1.1M in race-based cash handouts!
Evanston’s Reparations Committee just greenlit $25k direct payments to 44 more Black residents – descendants of folks who lived there 1919-1969 – bringing total awarded over $6.35M to 254 people so far from their $10M… pic.twitter.com/TSvoG4FVFE
— Bill Mitchell (@mitchellvii) February 11, 2026
“Among the program’s other fatal flaws is that it uses race as a proxy for discrimination without requiring proof of discrimination,” the lawsuit continued.
“To date, Evanston has awarded over $6,350,000 to 254 individuals based on their race,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in September when the lawsuit was filed.
“The city must be stopped before it spends even more money on this clearly discriminatory and unconstitutional reparations program,” he said.
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