Jermaine

2 months agoThe betrayal of the Reconstruction caused massive dislocation and confusion among Black people in the south and in the country in general. They were not prepared for this at all. Suddenly many Whites that they thought of as friends became open and declared enemies. The Freedmen’s Bureau and other agencies that had been set up to assist the former slaves were dismantled. Some southern politicians actually attempted to reestablish slavery. Southern writers, teachers, and bigoted agitators turned the cause of southern redemption into a religion. Finally the Republican Party bargained away the political rights of the southern Blacks in order to pacify the brooding southern Whites. Black politicians held on for a few more years, but their heyday in southern politics was over. The southerners were given the right to handle the “Negro” as they saw fit. This “right” opened the door for the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and other bigoted White terrorist organizations. The murder and harassment of Blacks by the Ku Klux Klan in the rural areas of the South drove Blacks in large numbers into the developing urban cities. In the cities, Blacks experienced even more complicated troubles, in addition to a new sophisticated kind of harassment. Blacks could not find jobs for the skills they had. Housing was poor, and the right to vote and hold public office had been challenged by the Ku Klux Klan in the cities. The Blacks had been deserted by their northern White friends. Many of the New England school moms who had come into the South a decade earlier had married southerners and had become southern in their attitude toward Blacks. The new Black educational institutions in the South were in serious financial trouble. Begging by the heads of these institutions is what kept most of them alive. This combination of events caused large numbers of Blacks to migrate from the rural and urban areas of the South to the industrial cities of the North. These migrating Blacks were looking for better jobs, better housing, better education for their children, and in general, a better way of life.

4 months ago(From left) Committee Chair Robin Rue Simmons, committee member Bonnie Lockhart, Council Member Krissie Harris and assistant to the city manager Tasheik Kerr. Evanston’s Reparations Committee Thursday announced that about $5 million has been disbursed so far to direct descendants and ancestors in the city’s effort to repair harms from discriminatory practices. Ancestors – who lived in Evanston between 1919 and 1969 as adults and who were affected by housing discrimination practices such as redlining – have received $3,392,974.81 as of September, according to the committee, which met at the Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave. Direct descendants of Black residents who lived in Evanston from 1919 through 1969 have received $1,675,000, according to the committee.  The city has met with 71 of 80 direct descendants and they have received funds. Of the other nine, four asked the city to hold off, two have small affidavits pending – forms that allow next of kin to transfer property from a deceased family member – and two the city has been unable to contact.  “I think it’s a step in the right direction. It’s not the only step that we’re taking, but 71 of 80 is a big number, and that’s a big deal,” Second Ward Council Member Krissie Harris said.

2 months agoThe betrayal of the Reconstruction caused massive dislocation and confusion among Black people in the south and in the country in general. They were not prepared for this at all. Suddenly many Whites that they thought of as friends became open and declared enemies. The Freedmen’s Bureau and other agencies that had been set up to assist the former slaves were dismantled. Some southern politicians actually attempted to reestablish slavery. Southern writers, teachers, and bigoted agitators turned the cause of southern redemption into a religion. Finally the Republican Party bargained away the political rights of the southern Blacks in order to pacify the brooding southern Whites. Black politicians held on for a few more years, but their heyday in southern politics was over. The southerners were given the right to handle the “Negro” as they saw fit. This “right” opened the door for the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and other bigoted White terrorist organizations. The murder and harassment of Blacks by the Ku Klux Klan in the rural areas of the South drove Blacks in large numbers into the developing urban cities. In the cities, Blacks experienced even more complicated troubles, in addition to a new sophisticated kind of harassment. Blacks could not find jobs for the skills they had. Housing was poor, and the right to vote and hold public office had been challenged by the Ku Klux Klan in the cities. The Blacks had been deserted by their northern White friends. Many of the New England school moms who had come into the South a decade earlier had married southerners and had become southern in their attitude toward Blacks. The new Black educational institutions in the South were in serious financial trouble. Begging by the heads of these institutions is what kept most of them alive. This combination of events caused large numbers of Blacks to migrate from the rural and urban areas of the South to the industrial cities of the North. These migrating Blacks were looking for better jobs, better housing, better education for their children, and in general, a better way of life.

4 months ago(From left) Committee Chair Robin Rue Simmons, committee member Bonnie Lockhart, Council Member Krissie Harris and assistant to the city manager Tasheik Kerr. Evanston’s Reparations Committee Thursday announced that about $5 million has been disbursed so far to direct descendants and ancestors in the city’s effort to repair harms from discriminatory practices. Ancestors – who lived in Evanston between 1919 and 1969 as adults and who were affected by housing discrimination practices such as redlining – have received $3,392,974.81 as of September, according to the committee, which met at the Morton Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave. Direct descendants of Black residents who lived in Evanston from 1919 through 1969 have received $1,675,000, according to the committee.  The city has met with 71 of 80 direct descendants and they have received funds. Of the other nine, four asked the city to hold off, two have small affidavits pending – forms that allow next of kin to transfer property from a deceased family member – and two the city has been unable to contact.  “I think it’s a step in the right direction. It’s not the only step that we’re taking, but 71 of 80 is a big number, and that’s a big deal,” Second Ward Council Member Krissie Harris said.