Federal Judge Permits DOJ Intervention in Evanston Reparations Suit

A federal judge granted the Justice Department permission to intervene in a lawsuit challenging Evanston, Illinois, reparations program this month.

The intervention adds a major legal hurdle to a municipal effort that is simultaneously expanding to more than 100 other communities across the country.

The case was initially filed by Judicial Watch, which argues that the city distributes funds based on race without identifying specific harms. Michael Bekesha, the attorney representing the plaintiffs, stated that the Constitution prohibits governments from picking winners and losers based entirely on race.

The Justice Department contends that the Evanston program violates the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause and the Fair Housing Act. Kiersten Pels, a Justice Department spokeswoman, said in a statement that race-based government benefit programs are unconstitutional and often violate federal civil rights law.

This legal move follows a warning letter sent last year to leaders in Asheville and Buncombe County, North Carolina, who were considering similar local programs. The administration's broader campaign against diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives has led some institutions to reconsider or scale back their efforts.

Robin Rue Simmons, who goes by N'nanba, helped create the Evanston program and now serves as the chair of its Reparations Committee. She said the administration presents many barriers, but the group still stands on federal redress as a collective goal.

The Evanston initiative provides $25,000 housing grants to Black residents whose families were affected by discriminatory housing policies. The program is the first of its kind in a U.S. municipality. N'nanba is now working to spread this model to other cities.

President Donald Trump has publicly criticized reparations, telling supporters in September that they want to steal money and that the effort is going nowhere. William Darity, a co-author on a reparations book, noted that no president has supported comprehensive Black reparations, adding that Trump will speak the word but with hostility.

The push for redress occurs as the nation marks its 250th anniversary. In March, the U.N. General Assembly passed a resolution calling the trafficking of enslaved Africans the gravest crime against humanity. More than 120 countries supported the resolution, while the United States, Argentina, and Israel voted against it.

Historical data indicates that an estimated 12.5 million Africans were forced onto ships bound for the Americas during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. About 1.8 million did not survive the journey, and roughly 388,000 were taken to what is now the United States. Chattel slavery in the U.S. lasted until 1865, followed by Jim Crow segregation that limited wealth building for Black Americans.