Chicago suburb will use marijuana sales tax to fund slavery reparations

Posted: Nov 29, 2019 / 03:03 PM CST / Updated: Nov 29, 2019 / 03:04 PM CST

FOX 7 NEWS

EVANSTON, Ill. (WTVO) — Aldermen in the Chicago suburb of Evanston voted to funnel all sales tax revenue collected from recreational marijuana into funding a local reparations program.

According to the Chicago Tribune, officials say the program will help the city’s black population stay in Evanston, while providing training for jobs and other benefits.

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

According to U.S. Census data, Evanston’s black population decreased from 22.5 percent in 2000 to 16.9 percent in 2017.

Simmons said many black residents were victims of the “war on drugs” and spent time in jail for smoking marijuana, according to the Tribune.

The proposal passed with a vote of 8-1.

Legislation to allow the sale of recreational marijuana in Illinois was passed this year and goes into effect on January 1st, 2020.