City reparations are ‘too little, too late’

Black residents left disillusioned by program’s rollout

By JESSICA MA daily senior staffer @jessicama2025

Eva Holland-Switchett still lives in the Evanston childhood home her mother bought in 1961.

She associates the house with memories of love. But Holland-Switchett, who is Black, also remembers the redlining practices her mother fought against to buy the house in the first place. For instance, her mother went to the bank to get a loan but couldn’t get it, she recalled.

About 60 years later, Holland-Switchett applied for Evanston’s Restorative Housing Program, hoping to use the housing grant to renovate her bathrooms. She said she remains frustrated with the process.

“With reparations, it’s hard to say whether it’s really going to happen,” she said.

Across Evanston, some Black residents said they are disillusioned by the reparations program, which seeks to compensate them for the city’s historic discriminatory housing policies and practices. So far, 16 residents have received the $25,000 housing grant, while more than 100 residents are on the waiting list. They ask where their promised money is, as they say the program is moving too slowly. At least five people passed away before receiving their promised grants.

Recipients can use the grant to renovate their homes, assist with mortgage payments or contribute to a down payment on a new home. To qualify for the program, applicants must fall within one of three categories: Black residents who lived in Evanston between 1919 and 1969 (referred to as “Ancestors”); direct descendants of an Ancestor; or residents who submitted evidence of experiencing housing discrimination after 1969. However, only those in the Ancestor category are receiving money in the current stage of the program.

“The thing is — when are they going to distribute (the money)?” Holland-Switchett said. “I feel the city is just taking people’s private information.”

In January 2022, the Reparations Committee used a

» See ELDERS , page 6