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Home My WebLink AboutSB Reparatory Justice Commission Common Council Presentaiton June 20262026 SOUTH BEND REPARATORV JUSTICE COMMISSION REPORT WWW.SBREPARATIONS.ORG Filed in Clerk's Office JUN O 8 2026 Bianca Tirado City Clerk, South Bend, IN COMMISSION MEMBERSCommission ChairTrina RobinsonCommission Co-ChairJudith Fox, Esq.Commission MembersConrad DamianAladean DeRose, Esq.Pastor Gilbert WashingtonTakisha JacobsJay Lewis, Esq.Alma Powell, MARichard WarfieldCassy White MPHRegina Williams-PrestonScan to access full report:sbreparations. org COMMISSION PURPOSE•Origin⚬Formed by the South Bend Common Council in September of 2023•Mission: ⚬Investigate harms against African Americans in South Bend, Indiana•Goal: ⚬Develop findings and present recommendations to address harms City of South BendRECOMMENDATIONSWe understand that the racial harms uncovered in this report are the result of the actions of multiple groups, institutions and people. While the City of South Bend can not solely rectify the harms of years of systemic discrimination, we believe the City of South Bend can take these specific steps toward racial reconciliation:1. The City should formally acknowledge and apologize for a long history of racial discrimination.2. The City should preserve this report as a permanent, easily accessible historical public record and commit to creating a robust website where citizens can learn about this history.3. The Common Council should appoint a permanent reparatory justice committee that includes experts, City officials, and citizens, the majority of whom should be Black. Current Commission members should be given priority if they want to continue to serve. The Committee should be charged with reviewing progress in implementing the recommendation of the Commission, monitoring compliance with reparatory justice, and identifying further measures that might come to light to ensure reparatory justice. The committee shall report to the Common Council the progress toward implementing the Commission’s recommendations and suggestions for the adoption of any additional measures needed for reparatory justice at least annually.Immediate Implementation Based on the findings of this report, the Commission has developed 62 recommendations.The following slides identify key opportunities for consideration by the City of South Bend, followed by a complete overview of the harms and recommendations organized by subcommittee. Meaningful progress will require collaboration among public, private, nonprofit, and community stakeholders. It is our hope that these recommendations serve as a framework for continued partnership and action to advance equitable outcomes across our community. COMMISSION SCOPEFive Subcommittees:•Economic Opportunity & Employment•Housing•Education•Health & Mental Health•Policing & Criminal Legal System COMMISSION SCOPEEmployment & Economic Subcommittee Employment & Economic OpportunitySUBCOMMITTEE FOCUS:•Employment•Small Businesses•Professionals•Public Accommodations Employment & Economic OpportunityA.HistoryB.Lingering HarmsC. Suggested Remedies History•Underground Railroad•1870–SJC 25,322–AA 120 HistoryWWI migration•1910 –53,684 604 (1.1%)•1920–70,983 1,269 (1.8%)WWI second wave•1940–101,268 3,555 (3.5%)•1950–115,415 7,670 (6.6%) Discrimination in Public Accommodations •Limits for Black Women–Domestic Work–Barriers to factory work–Barriers to teaching–Barriers to nursing History – employment discrimination•Carrie Hull’s story Black Business District Lingering Harms(1) Wealth Gap Lingering Harms(2) Fewer Blacks in management or high-paying jobs Lingering Harms(3) Fewer Black-owned businesses and Fewer Black professionals SUGGESTED REMEDIES INCLUDE:•(1) Support & Guide Young People –Youth Wealth-Building Education–Trade Union Youth Engagement•(2) Support Current Employees–OTJ Management Training and Education–Limit Criminal History & Credit Checks•(3) Support Black Businesses–Preferential City contracting–Expand TIF and Tax abatement compliance–Grants for start-ups and small businesses COMMISSION SCOPEHousing Subcommittee Housing DiscriminationA Condensed History Maggie’s Court in 1916no plumbingno garbage collection President Wilson, 1917:“Own your Own Home”explicitly racist effort to segregate housing in America. White citizens were told it was their patriotic duty to buy a home and move away from Black residents. “consider the ‘general type of people living in the neighborhood’” New housing, good housing, was for Whites only. Government recommendations adopted by city“Carefully compiled zoning regulations” “exercise control over the subject property but also over the surrounding area.”Covenants that prohibited “the occupancy of properties except by the race for which they are intended” were also recommended. “infiltration of inharmonious racial groups” will lower home values and deteriorate neighborhoods”. Racial Covenants: Sunnymeade example•Article 6: Caucasian Owners: No plot in said subdivision nor any interest therein except when used for commercial purposes, shall be conveyed to or leased, or be acquired by, any person other than one of the Caucasian Race. •Article 7:Caucasians and Servants: Excepting on land zoned for commercial purposes, no persons other than of the Caucasian Race shall be permitted to occupy any portion of any plot in said subdivision or any other building thereon at any time, except a domestic servant actually employed by the occupant of such building. Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) Map Federal Housing Act of 1937• Gave local Housing Authority control over building public housing• City used this to create segregated housing Building worker homes1936Works Progress Administration survey of South Bend documented the need for this additional housing in the City, especially for war workers1939In 1939, South Bend’s mayor urged the Common Council to create a housing authority. They declined, claiming there was no need for additional housing in the City.1941the Common Council finally relented and voted to create a housing authority, only for defense workers “46 Negro families” to “be left without homes.”• City Refused to build on vacant land due to segregation• Proposed tearing down homes and St. John’s Baptist Church• Beck’s Lake and Maggie’s Court 1950sA. C. Colpaert Realty and Place and Company refused to build homes for blacks in white areasInstead build inferior homes at inflated prices for black residentsWilliam Morris developed Chalfant Heights off Twckenham Drive White residents sent letters saying “Niggers go home”Better Homes and Chalfant Heights only developments where blacks could buy homes 1925 National Association of Real Estate Boards “code of Ethics”“do not introduce members of any race or nationality whose presence will clearly be detrimental to the property values of that neighborhood. Like termites, they undermine the structure of any neighborhood in which they creep.” South Bend and Mishawaka Board of Realtors• Protected “racial homogeny,” • code of ethics: I will not introduce into a neighborhood any inharmonious elements (sell homes to Blacks in a White neighborhood) 1960s• Common Council repeatedly refused to approve public housing in white neighborhoods• City obtained Federal Urban Renewal contract to revitalize business district, razing many homes• Built Plaza (now Rabbi Shulman) apartments and Alonzo Watson housing in black areas of town• Both have been recently condemned because the Housing Authority failed to maintain them Redevelopment = Destruction of Black Homes and BusinessesWhite FamiliesFamiliesOf color# of FamiliesProject12104116Chapin Street6149335LaSalle Park145190335Sample Street 1980s• 1984 Study done by South Bend Human Rights Commission and HUD found • “clear evidence that there was significant amount of unequal treatment of blacks and whites in the rental market in South Bend”• Louis Mumford, Rental -market bias falls, but…,South Bend Tribune, April 28, 1988 1988 StudyHuman Rights Commission and HUD:63% equal treatment9.6% unequal treatment27% ambiguous : hard to tell if treatment was equal or not 2000s: Predatory loans• Stripped wealth from communities• Blacks targeted despite income or credit scores• City refused to help, despite being asked Information from “Analysis of the Impediments to Fair Housing Choice for St. Joseph County” St. Joseph County Housing Consortium 2020-2024•Race was the most common basis for a fair housing complaint, weighted heavily by complaints based on race in the City of South Bend at 40.5% of total fair housing complaints in the County (p.143)•Lending Discrimination: In every income category, White applicants have a higher loan origination rate and a lower denial rate than minority applicants (p. 213)•Zoning ordinances that were meant to prevent student rentals have been far-reaching, and have negatively affected protected classes (p. 212)•Residential racial segregation has actually increased since 2010 (p 30) Fewer Black Homeowners Disproportionality:•Discipline Referrals•Special Education Placement•Gifted & Talented ProgramsSubcommittee Focus HistoryHarrison School 1953 Enrollment ChangesEnrollment grew 1.3% to 9% over the course of 60 years Linden School Consent Decree Plan Z(2003)Middle School AcademiesAdams - Global StudiesWashington - MedicalRiley - TechnologyMagnet High Schools Public Forum Testimonials Harms SBCSC DATA2024-251999-2000198036%36%23%% Black Enrollment--47%--% Special Education--16%.07%Gifted & Talented65%57%61%% Expulsions64%56% --% Out of School Suspension Data on Special Education Data on Program IntegrationCourse Totals 1982-83Black Students make up 6% Honors English and just 4% AP English Discipline Take action to address:●Discipline●Academic placement and classification●Culture awarenessRecommendations COMMISSION SCOPEHealth & Mental Health Subcommittee MEDICAL MALTREATMENT: The Tuskegee Experiment•In 1932, the Public Health Service and the Tuskegee Institute began a study of the natural history of syphilis. •The study initially involved 600 black men – 399 with syphilis, 201 without the disease—and was conducted without informed consent. The men were told they were being treated for “bad blood”.ive Historic Documents1941 Mr. Negro Facts About Your HealthBoard of Health News 194110 times more tuberculosis deaths in 1940 than other populationsAverage age of death from death from TB for Black and African Americans: 30 Oral Histories -• Dr. Ronald Chamble• When I came here in 1953 as an intern, both of these hospitals were segregated, Memorial and St. Joseph.• very few Blacks that were selected and referred to osteopathic because of the relationship between physicians in positions of power at these hospitals. Oral History, Alan Pinado:Realtor trying to find a site for a black dentistWhite owner refused to sell to him because” “Well our neighbors, we use to live there in that neighborhood; all our friends would, they just wouldn’t understand” Tried to find a white real estate broker to buy the property and to act as middlemanDenied because he would be “black balled” by the real estate community 2014 Nursing Book Cause of Death Years of Potential Life Lost EducationFood SystemsNeighborhood and Built EnvironmentEconomic StabilityCommunity and Social ContextHealthcare SystemSocial Drivers of Health Social Drivers of Health When inequities are high and community assets are low, health outcomes are worst.When inequities are low and community assets are high, health outcomes are better.Adverse Living Conditions PovertySegregationMarketing for Tobacco and AlcoholSubstance AbuseHIV/ AIDSInfant MortalityNutritionCVDStressObesityDepression SmokingFragmented Systems Powerlessness Disinvestment Disconnected MembersEnvironmental Toxins Occupational Hazards Institutional Racism Unemployment DiscriminationViolenceSubstance AbuseInfant MortalityCVDStress SmokingHIV/AIDSNutritionViolence ObesityDepressionSense of Community Social Networks Social Support Participation LeadershipPolitical InfluenceOrganizational NetworksQuality SchoolsAccess to Recreational Facilities Adequate IncomeHealth InsuranceJobsClean Environment Access to Healthy Foods Access to Healthcare Quality Housing Transportation Resources...Root CausesImproved quality of lifeHealth Outcomes correlate to... Infant Mortality Infant Mortality Social Drivers of Health associated with Infant and Maternal HealthEconomicStability Systems of PowerThe SDOH discussed here influence maternal and infant health outcomes but are not an exhaustive list. Since the categories play key roles in shaping these health outcomes, paying attention to improving these conditions can translate to better maternal and infant health. SJCBlack Asian Pacific Islander AIAN6004002000SJC Heart Disease Death Rate for Ages 35+ 2017-2019White HispanicPopulation groupsRate per 100,000 PeopleSource: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health PromotionFemaleMaleAll GenderNote:Rates are age standardized and spatially smoothed 3 year averages, 2017-2019, ages 35+.The Asian Pacific Islander data is suppressed when below 16 to ensure confidentiality.The average rate of death due to heart diseases for all age groups in the county is174.5 deaths per100,000 population.Heart Disease Social Drivers of Health Associated with Chronic Disease and CareEconomic StabilityEducationFoodSystems Source: University of Richmond Digital Scholarship Lab1930s Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) Graded NeighborhoodsLead PoisoningCDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index (2022)Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease RegistrySource: Indiana Department of Health, Lead and Healthy Homes DivisionLead Census Tract Risk Map (2024) SocialDrivers of HealthLead PoisoningNeighborhoodand BuiltEnvironmentEconomic Stability ●From 2015-2019, Black county residents were 42% more likely to die from ‘mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders than White residents.●21 percent of Black people experience mental health concerns, but fewer than 4 in 10 of those individuals seek mental health services. Black people are less likely to receive counseling or treatment and are more likely to be arrested when they experience a mental health breakdown. The stressors Black people face make their symptoms more acute. Suggested Remedies: • Increase the number of community health workers, health navigators, and peer support specialists. Hire and train these positions with people from the Black communities to assist residents in access insurance, scheduling appointments, access mental health services, and understanding treatment options.• Mandate an annual public report on health disparities, progress on reparatory initiatives, and community feedback sessions.• Ensure access to healthy and affordable foods, especially on the west side.• Enhance the City lead removal program supporting the homes in the zip codes with the highest risk to lead exposure (46613, 46619, and 46628).• Support efforts in the community to increase the number of peer counselors.• Create scholarships and mentorship programs for Black students pursuing careers in healthcare. Partner with local universities and hospitals to increase representation in medical fields.• Establish a Black Health Equity Fund dedicated to supporting health initiatives for Black residents, including preventative care, chronic disease management, and maternal health programs. COMMISSION SCOPEPolicing Subcommittee POLICING & CRIMINAL JUSTICEUpdateThe Policing and Criminal Justice Committee identified several areas warranting further examination, including disparities in arrests involving Black residents, use-of-force practices, allegations of civil rights violations, pretrial incarceration related to bail affordability, and community perceptions of law enforcement and the courts. However, the Committee determined that additional research and analysis are needed to produce a comprehensive and factually grounded report. Our Ultimate Goal Is To ActivateSystemic Change & Restorative PoliciesULTIMATE GOAL THANK YOU!Questions & CommentsScan to access full report:sbreparations. org Scan to access full report: Commission Chair Trina Robinson Commission Co-Chair Judith Fox, Esq. Commission Members Conrad Damian Aladean DeRose, Esq. Pastor Gilbert Washington Takisha Jacobs Jay Lewis, Esq. Alma Powell, MA Richard Warfield Cassy White MPH Regina Williams-Preston sbreparations. org