Approximately 250 leaders, advocates and supporters from across the United States gathered in Evanston, Illinois, for the 4th Annual National Symposium for State and Local Reparations.

This three-day event, held from December 4-6, focused on advancing justice and equity through reparative policies under the theme “Solutions Only.”

Organized by Robin Rue Simmons of FirstRepair and Dr. Ron Daniels of the National African American Reparations Commission (NAARC), the symposium featured a dynamic agenda designed to empower local and state-level reparations initiatives.

The event commenced with pre-symposium activities, including a bus tour of local reparative efforts, visits to the FirstRepair Resource Center, and an awards ceremony honoring key leaders in the movement.

A welcome dinner set the tone for three days of collaboration, learning, and community building. The formal program launched the evening of Dec. 4 and continued through Dec. 6, offering participants a range of workshops, discussions, and networking opportunities.

Dr. Joy Angela DeGruy, author of “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing,” delivered a powerful keynote address. Dr. DeGruy emphasized the importance of addressing systemic injustice, stating.

“We may not have created the cracks in the foundation, but we have inherited the house.” Her insights laid the groundwork for discussions centered on addressing multigenerational trauma and creating actionable pathways for repair.

The call for reparations is rooted in the demand for accountability and justice for centuries of systemic U.S. government-sponsored oppression—not just chattel slavery. Advocates argue that reparations should address the cumulative economic, social, and psychological damage inflicted upon Black Americans.

While slavery laid the foundation for many of the inequities seen today, Jim Crow laws, legalized segregation, voter suppression, and systemic resistance to equality during the civil rights era further entrenched these disparities.

Contemporary issues, such as mass incarceration and redlining, perpetuate these inequities. Together, these historic and ongoing injustices have created profound disparities in wealth, opportunity, and social standing within Black communities.

“The reparations movement is thriving and energized.  I am encouraged to welcome 250 local leaders from every region of these United States to the 4th Annual Symposium to advance our collective repair.

Self-determination should be our focus; we cannot achieve reparations externally if we are not healed and whole internally.  We will achieve full repair once we prioritize our collective and comprehensive well-being.

This year our theme was ‘Solutions Only.’ We must unite and we must take action now. Without wavering, without compromise, we must synchronize and move onward,” said Ms. Simmons

Notable speakers and attendees included Nation of Islam Student Minister Nuri Muhammad of Mosque No. 74 in Indianapolis; Dr. Amara Enya, chairwoman of the International Civil Society Working Group for the United Nations Permanent Forum on People of African Descent;

Nkechi Taifa, founder of the Reparation Education Project; Attorney Areva Martin, civil rights lawyer and CNN contributor; Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss and many other notable leaders and activists.

Presenters and speakers offered practical strategies to advance local reparations programs and connect communities to valuable resources.

“I feel that we are in the midst of history in the making. Right here, right now, starting with Illinois. It’s grown from one jurisdiction to almost 100 jurisdictions across the country, examining skeletons in their own backyard.

Emanating back to the enslavement era and connecting those dots to today,” said Atty. Taifa. “We have a bill in the D.C. City Council to establish a reparations task force. This is an issue whose time has come. It’s our time, it’s nation time, it’s reparations time.”

“Actually, it was the Nation of Islam that really helped set the stage in terms of putting this issue on the map. I remember that year after year in Muhammad Speaks and The Final Call, it stated that all Black people should be exempt from taxation as long as we are denied equal justice. Give us our own land, territory, etc.,” said Atty. Taifa.

Originally articulated in 1965 in “Message to the Blackman” by the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad and continued by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam has consistently championed comprehensive justice, equality, and autonomy for Black Americans.

Particularly those descended from enslaved ancestors. Outlined in The Muslim Program “What the Muslims Want” in Muhammad Speaks and The Final Call, the vision includes demands for full freedom, equal justice under the law, and equitable opportunities in all areas of society.

A cornerstone of the proposal that highlights what repair could look like is the establishment of a separate state or territory for descendants of enslaved people, with financial and structural support from former slave masters for a period of 20 to 25 years to ensure self-sufficiency and independence.

“What the Muslims Want” also extends further to address systemic injustices still prevalent today. This includes the liberation of wrongfully incarcerated Black individuals, an end to police brutality, and the creation of fair employment opportunities to eliminate entrenched economic disparities.

A significant focus is placed on education reform, advocating for the establishment of separate, Black-led schools to promote self-respect and community upliftment.

Additionally, the call includes tax exemptions for Black Americans until equality is fully achieved, underscoring the need to address the profound and ongoing harm caused by systemic racism and exploitation.

“Why is it necessary to press the government for reparations? Because the greatest crime against humanity in the history of the world was the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

The most wicked people that ever lived on this planet are the slave traders, the slave makers, and the slave masters,” said Student Minister Nuri Muhammad, keynote speaker for the symposium luncheon on Dec. 5. “Did you know in 1862, Abraham Lincoln passed a law that gave reparations to slave masters?

You mean to tell me that you can’t give reparations to the people who went through hell, but you can give reparations to the people that gave us hell?”

The growth of the symposium over the past four years has encouraged Dr. Daniels. “It means that we are winning. Dr. Conrad Worrill would say that,” he said, referring to the late freedom fighter and activist.

“He’s a dear friend of mine along with the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, and despite all the despair and setbacks, we are winning. It is ironic, righteous justice that the rejected stone is actually going to be the cornerstone of a whole new social order in this country,” he said.

The Dec. 5 agenda culminated in a special Reparations Town Hall at Second Baptist Church, commemorating the fifth anniversary of Evanston’s landmark Resolution 126-R-19. This resolution established the nation’s first government-backed reparations program.

The town hall, led by Judge Lionel Jean-Baptiste, featured an intergenerational panel of Evanston residents and leaders from Tulsa and Palm Springs, California. Panelists shared personal stories and reflections on the transformative impact of reparations initiatives.

Evanston’s trailblazing work inspired attendees, many of whom shared how these efforts have informed reparations campaigns in their own communities.

A highlight of the symposium was the launch of the National Resource Center for State and Local Reparations located in Evanston. The center serves as a hub for reparative justice, offering technical assistance, leadership training.

And access to an extensive library of resources curated in partnership with Semicolon Books, a Black-owned Chicago bookstore. Designated an African American Heritage Site by the Shorefront Legacy Center, the center will also host programming for the Evanston community, including book talks and events with reparations leaders.

As the first city to implement a government-funded reparations program in 2021, Evanston continues to lead the national conversation. The symposium reinforces the city’s role as a model for communities across the nation working to repair historical injustices and build equitable futures. 

Kamm Howard of Reparations United provided an update on state and local reparations efforts. “In Chicago, we are actively working to fulfill the mayor’s executive order to establish a reparations commission. At the state level, the commission has been tasked with four key mandates:

developing programs to preserve Black communities, reinstating vocational training in schools, creating parity programs to ensure Black vendors have fair access to state contracts, and drafting a slavery disclosure ordinance that includes provisions for redress,” Mr. Howard explained.