The Racial Justice Team (RJT) is hosting several events to learn more about reparations for the harm to African Americans caused by systematic racism and discrimination. This series is part of our church’s effort to educate ourselves to address racism and the effects of racism in our community.

A good way to help our church’s anti-racism efforts is to invite a friend or two to come with you.

Thursday, February 29 in Fellowship Hall, UUCUC
Doors open at 6 p.m., and the film starts at 6:30 p.m.

Join us for a powerful evening exploring the complexities of racial justice and reparations through the lens of The Big Payback, a gripping documentary by Erika Alexander and Whitney Dow. Robin Rue Simmons, former 5th Ward alderman for Evanston, IL, spearheaded the effort to create a reparations program in that city. Witness the behind the scenes efforts by Simmons and supporters to pass the first-ever tax-funded reparations bill for Black Americans in the US.

After the film, we will engage in a vital dialogue moderated by Dr. Jeff Trask of the Champaign-Urbana Reparations Coalition. This is an opportunity to confront history, ignite conversation, and imagine a future built on equity and redress. Don’t miss this important film and discussion!

Learn more about the movie and the reparations movement.

Tuesday, January 23 “The Cost of Inheritance: An American Reframed Special,” from 6-9 p.m. in Fellowship Hall

Building on key issues of diversity and democracy, slavery and its aftermath, and socio-economic indicators, this documentary puts real people and their family histories into the reparations debate. Personal stories, expert interviews, and rich archival materials underscored by evocative music weave a narrative around the issue of reparations today, so many years after the historical understanding of the end of slavery in America. Noted speakers address the cumulative impact that Reconstruction, Black Laws, Jim Crow, modern-day violence, and discrimination added to divergent wealth trajectories and opportunities firmly rooted in the system of enslavement. Individuals seeking to bridge our human divide share their reparations quests and we begin to understand the myriad of initiatives already happening across the country on local, state & national levels to make reparations a reality. Following the movie, Dr. Sundiata Cha-Jua (faculty member at the University of Illinois Department of African American Studies), Priscilla Kron (member of the Racial Justice Team), and Jim Hannum (member of the Racial Justice Team) will lead a discussion about the ideas presented.

If you’d like to become more involved in our church’s anti-racism efforts, please contact Jim Hannum (jwhannum@gmail.com).