Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson addressed the crowd on Monday at a Juneteenth flag-raising event in downtown Chicago.
June 19, 2024 Story by: Editor
CHICAGO — Mayor Brandon Johnson has appointed Carla Kupe as the city’s new chief equity officer and is moving forward with a $500,000 task force on reparations announced last year.
Kupe, formerly the first director of diversity, equity, inclusion, and compliance for the city’s inspector general, co-founded a Black women-owned law firm and leads a consulting enterprise focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism colonialism. At a ceremony on Tuesday, Johnson signed an executive order to establish the reparations task force, which was initially set to start on January 1 with a $500,000 budget allocation from his $16.77 billion 2024 budget. The position of chief equity officer had been vacant since December 2023, following the departure of Candace Moore, appointed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2019.
Kupe is expected to play a key role in shaping reparations in Chicago. Addressing the Daley Plaza crowd, she shared her experiences and emphasized the potential of government and community collaboration to create a “more just and inclusive Chicago.”
During her tenure at the Office of Inspector General, Kupe helped develop 27 racial equity action plans for city departments. One notable plan facilitated a $6 million commitment from the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events to community artists.
“It’s as much about transforming systems as it is about healing and reckoning with our complex past,” said Kupe, the daughter of Congolese immigrants.
Speaking on the significance of the Juneteenth holiday, Kupe described it as a celebration of freedom and progress, and a reminder of the ongoing struggle to dismantle systemic injustice.
Johnson expressed his dedication to advancing reparations in Chicago. “It is now the time to deliver good on reparations for the people of Chicago, particularly Black people,” Johnson said, without specifying the form or funding sources for the reparations.
He highlighted the enduring impact of slavery and criticized past administrations for actions that harmed Black communities, including selling public assets, closing Black schools, and shutting down public housing. “These anti-Black, anti-business endeavors have caused tremendous harm and pain,” Johnson said.
Johnson emphasized that reparations could “unlock the doors of prosperity” for neighborhoods long neglected. Apologizing on behalf of the city, he acknowledged the historic wrongs committed against Black Chicagoans and their ancestors.
In closing, Johnson declared, “God bless the Blackest city in the world.”
A follow-up press release from the mayor’s office detailed the task force’s mission to define and framework reparations, identify key issues for redress, study policies that have harmed Black Chicagoans from the slavery era to the present day, and recommend appropriate remedies and restitution for past and present injustices.
“Today’s executive order is not just a public declaration. It is a pledge to shape the future of our city by confronting the legacy of inequity that has plagued Chicago for far too long,” Johnson stated.
Since 2020, the City Council has had a reparations subcommittee, but progress was minimal during Lightfoot’s term. Former Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th), who chaired the Health and Human Services Committee, explained the slow progress after a June 2022 hearing.
“The mayor is not as supportive as I would have hoped. A lot of us are willing to go further. But there’s been some recalcitrance by an administration that does not think this is the way to go,” Sawyer said.
“I keep pushing. I’ve been pushing on this for years. I’m gonna continue to make this an issue. If we do this correctly, we will see a corresponding drop in criminal activity and also health outcomes and other things that we’re experiencing in the Black community.” Source: abc 7 EYEWITNESS NEWS
