Reparations activist spreads housing programme despite Trump administration opposition

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 24 Oct, 05:32 · Archive

Robin Rue Simmons is expanding Evanston's municipal reparations programme to over 100 communities, but faces obstacles from the Trump administration's campaign against race-based initiatives.

Robin Rue Simmons has spent years trying to address the legacy of slavery in the United States. In Evanston, Illinois, she helped create a housing grant programme for Black residents whose families were harmed by discriminatory housing policies, distributing $25,000 grants. Rue Simmons is now spreading what she describes as the nation's first municipal reparations programme to more than 100 communities across the country.

The Trump administration's campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion programmes has created obstacles for this work. The administration is also pursuing broader efforts to curtail federal support for race-based initiatives and Black history, prompting some institutions to reconsider or quietly scale back reparations work.

Rue Simmons, chairman of Evanston's Reparations Committee and a former city councilwoman, told the Associated Press: 'Under this administration, of course, there are many barriers to achieving that, but we still stand on federal redress as our collective north star.' Meanwhile, in March the United Nations General Assembly issued a resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans 'the gravest crime against humanity' and calling for reparations, with more than 120 countries supporting it. Only three countries voted against it: Argentina, Israel and the United States.

How it is being reported

• As Trump fights over what America owes, slavery descendants organize for the futureRobin Rue Simmons has been working to address the legacy of slavery in the United States.Clickorlando · 24 Oct, 05:02
• As Trump fights over what America owes, slavery descendants organize for the futureRobin Rue Simmons has been working to address the legacy of slavery in the United States.News4Jax · 24 Oct, 05:02

In this story: Robin Rue Simmons · Evanston · Trump administration · United Nations General Assembly · United States

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