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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5175-26 Res. Accepting the Historical Sections of the Reparatory Justice Comm. Report Documenting a History of Discrimination Against Black Residents, Acknowledging Recommendations, and Issuing an Apology From the Common Council and on Behalf of the City RESOLUTION No . 5175-26 Passed by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana June 22, 2026 Attest: _ 4 . City Clerk ianca L. Tirado Attest: President of Common Council Presented by me to the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana June 29, 2026 City Clerk 1 Bianca L. do Approved and signed by me J yht LS� 20 26 Mayor coUTR /865 SUBSTITUTE BILL NO. 26-18 RESOLUTION NO. 5175-26 A RESOLUTION OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, FORMALLY ACCEPTING THE HISTORICAL SECTION OF THE FINAL REPORT OF THE REPARATORY JUSTICE COMMISSION AND THE HISTORY OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AGAINST BLACK RESIDENTS DOCUMENTED THEREIN, ACKNOWLEDGING THE ANALYSES AND RECOMMENDATIONS SECTIONS OF THE REPORT FOR PURPOSES OF POLICY DISCUSSIONS, AND ISSUING A FORMAL APOLOGY FROM THE COMMON COUNCIL AND ON BEHALF OF THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND WHEREAS, on September 25, 2023, the Common Council of the City of South Bend established the Reparatory Justice Commission to examine the history of racial discrimination against Black residents of South Bend and to recommend measures by which the City might repair the documented harms of that history; and WHEREAS, the Commission, composed of community members with expertise across housing, employment, education, health, civil rights, and public service conducted eighteen months of research, public testimony, archival inquiry, and community engagement; and WHEREAS, the Commission produced a final report of 138 pages documenting an extensive history of racial discrimination in economic opportunity & employment, housing, education, health & mental health, policing & criminal justice system, sustained over more than a century, and identified sixty-two specific recommendations for the City, the Common Council, allied institutions, and community partners; and WHEREAS, the historical record the Commission has compiled draws on official municipal records, federal and state archives, scholarly research, and the lived testimony of South Bend residents whose families experienced the harms documented therein; and WHEREAS,this Council recognizes that an accurate account of the City's history is the foundation on which any honest reparative efforts must build from; and WHEREAS,the Commission's recommendations represent a substantive framework for further discussions from which the work of repair, and the Common Council and the administration of the City of South Bend, along the South Bend Community School Corporation, the Housing Authority of South Bend,the St. Joseph County Health Department, area hospitals and universities, faith communities, philanthropic institutions, and the broader business community bear collective and shared responsibility for the implementation of policies and legislation within the bounds of the Constitution and applicable law to benefit all residents. NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana: SECTION I. The Common Council formally accepts the historical sections of the final report of the Reparatory Justice Commission and enters them as a substantive framework into the permanent public record of the City of South Bend. SECTION II. The Common Council acknowledges, on behalf of the City of South Bend, the history of racial discrimination documented in the report—in economic opportunity & employment, housing, education, health& mental health,policing & criminal justice system— sustained over more than a century. SECTION III. On behalf of the City of South Bend, the Common Council apologizes to the Black residents of the City of South Bend, past and present, for that history and for the harms it has caused. SECTION IV.The Common Council expresses its gratitude to the members of the Reparatory Justice Commission for their work, to the community members whose testimony made that work possible, to former Council President Sharon McBride for empaneling the Commission, and to Council President Canneth Lee for shepherding the report to its current place among the historical documents of the City of South Bend. SECTION V. The Common Council commits to preserving the Commission's final report, supporting documentation, and historical research as a permanent public record, including through a dedicated public website to be developed in partnership with the St. Joseph County Public Library and the Indiana University South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center. SECTION VI. The Common Council calls upon the administration of the City of South Bend to act upon the analyses and recommendations as a framework for discussions for the implementation of policies and legislation within its executive authority and within the limits of all federal & state laws and Constitutions, and in coordination with the Common Council, and to report annually the Common Council and the public on the implementation of those actions. SECTION VII. The Common Council recognizes that the work of repair extends beyond the authority of any single body or branch of city government, and calls upon the South Bend Community School Corporation, the Housing Authority of South Bend, the St. Joseph County Health Department, area hospitals and universities, faith communities, philanthropic institutions, and the broader business community to engage with the Commission's recommendations as bases for further discussion and implementation of policies and legislation within their respective spheres of responsibility. SECTION VIII. This Resolution shall take effect upon passage by the South Bend Common Council and approval by the Mayor. Dated this 22nd day of June 2026 Canneth J. Lee, Coun President South Bend Common Council Attest: 94494 411AA/COL - Bianca L. Tirado, City Clerk Office of the City Clerk Presented by me, the undersigned Clerk of the City of South Bend, to the Mayor of the City of South Bend, Indiana on the 11-1" day of 11Ahe , 2026, at 4 o'clock p.m. Bianca L. Tirado, City rk Office of the City Clerk Approved and signed by me on the Z7µ day of d ak t , 2026, at y o'clock .m. /41, Jame ueller, Mayor City of South Bend, Indiana