Why so many Black Chicagoans are frustrated by the migrant crisis

Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

One year ago, I was elected alderman of the 5th Ward. I chose to run to prevent displacement of Black residents of Woodlawn and South Shore with the development of the Obama Presidential Center.

Such displacement threatens to lead to a further decline in Black Chicago's population, which has plummeted in the past 40 years.

The peak of Black population of Chicago was in 1980, when nearly 1.2 million Black people called Chicago home. But by 2020, that figure fell to roughly 788,000, the lowest census count of Black Chicagoans since the 1950 census.

This population loss weakened Black political power as people left predominantly Black neighborhoods on the South and West sides. During that same period, those communities experienced more economic disinvestment and more crime than the rest of the city. Between 2000 and 2010, thousands of former public housing residents relocated to South Shore without the proper support to acclimate to a neighborhood that already needed more resources.

We watched as business corridors became shells of their former selves. Old awnings became the only reminder of a once-vibrant economic community.

South Shore was not the only neighborhood that suffered. And with this issue in the back of their minds, Black people have been faced with a lose-lose proposition that asks us to sacrifice for others and wait on help that may never come. The migrant influx has many Black Chicagoans frustrated.

With the election of another Black mayor, Black residents felt that finally the chief executive would fully break the decades-long tradition of leaving Black folks last. Our streets are crumbling, our storefronts are vacant, our neighborhoods are unsafe, young people are hopeless and our elders are losing their homes. So many neighborhoods that are not on the South and West sides are thriving, and we can’t get any relief. The pain couldn’t be any more obvious.

Now, the migrant issue has been placed right in the laps of these same Black folks. Thousands of migrants have been resettled in Black neighborhoods, and the city, county and state developed a plan to support them.

A $70 million ‘strong-arm robbery’

As part of that plan, City Council members were asked last month to support a new $70 million investment in our migrant mission that, coupled with money from the state and county, will equal $300 million. This investment felt like a strong-arm robbery when you consider the meager investments Black leaders have asked for and been denied. To many, it was offensive, and it showed in the vote. Most of my Black colleagues were able to vote "no." And it made sense: They voted in line with their constituents, and frankly, it didn’t directly affect their wards.

That was not my reality. Thousands of migrants have resettled in South Shore. Without securing $300 million now, the city will definitely have to spend far more than $70 million later. This would have literally been an instance of cutting off the nose to spite the face.

But if we can do it for one community of color, we can surely do it for our native Black residents. On multiple occasions, residents have come into my ward office and asked me "What is the mayor’s plan for Black Chicago?" They have come to my town hall meetings and asked why Black homeless residents and families in poverty are not also quickly receiving rent vouchers or SNAP cards. And honestly, these are all valid questions.

I've taken heat for understanding that we must get out in front of the migrant issue and voting that way. But when Black residents see the large financial investment being made to help support the migrants, they rightfully question when it will happen for them. We can make the same investment in our own as we have in others. Now is the chance for bold and courageous leadership to preserve Black Chicago by committing the same amount of money that has been spent to date on our migrant mission, $300 million, since August 2022.

That money directed to Black wards could drive infrastructure projects that put our residents to work and provide good jobs that build families and grow safe communities. But more than that, it would signal that this administration will no longer put Black Chicago on the back-burner. Black Chicago is still feeling the effects of Chicago’s racist housing covenants that denied Black families access to the American dream of home ownership and to billions of dollars in generational wealth.

Black Chicago is on life support, but the cure rests within this body. This city owes a debt to Black Chicago. It’s time to pay up.

Ald. Desmon Yancy represents the 5th Ward.

The Sun-Times welcomes letters to the editor and op-eds. See our guidelines.

The views and opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Chicago Sun-Times or any of its affiliates.