'Special Moment' In Evanston With Legal Marijuana Sales Supporting Reparations Program

Recreational marijuana sales will commence in 2020 in Illinois, most likely on New Year’s Day.

The city of Evanston plans to use those sales to address the issue of a decreasing black population, according to The Chicago Tribune.

The black population in Evanston fell from 22.5% in 2000 to 16.9% in 2017,  according to U.S. Census data.

On Monday, Evanston aldermen voted for using all sales tax revenue from recreational cannabis purchases to support a fund that will design a local reparations program, the Tribune said. 

The program will be focused on the black population in Evanston and offer programming such as job training. 

“We can implement funding to directly invest in black Evanston,” said 5th Ward Ald. Robin Rue Simmons, who proposed the reparations bill.

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The source of the money is perfectly suitable, considering that many black residents were negatively affected by the war on the drugs, ending up in jail for something that will now be legal, Simmons reportedly said. 

The fund will be capped at $10 million, and based on the projections, legal recreational marijuana sales taxes could bring around $500,000 to $750,000 a year in Evanston, the Trib said. 

“This is a really special moment in the city of Evanston and also in the country,” said Evanston's 2nd Ward Ald. Peter Braithwaite. 

Photo by Madcoverboy via Wikimedia.