Some Thoughts After Our Event - and After the Horrors in Charlottesville

We were so glad that so many in our community were able to join Neighbors for Affordable Housing last Thursday night to take part in the panel discussion, Affordability and Segregation in Chicago: Past, Present, and Future. Thank you so much for being part of our community’s work to build a more welcoming and inclusive Northwest Side.

Above all, welcome to the Northwest Side Open Housing team! We’re so glad you’re here!

As you may have seen, the Chicago Reader recently characterized last week’s Neighbors for Affordable Housing gathering as a “glimpse into the possibility of mobilizing our city's better nature.” Because of the vibrant participation of supporters like you, our neighborhood is making it clear that there is no lull in community organizing or engagement around our Open Housing Campaign. This past May, as you know, our community showed its support for affordable housing when 150 residents came to City Hall to advocate in favor of the proposed $30 million investment to build mixed-income housing at 5150 N. Northwest Highway. Together we achieved our first Zoning Committee victory! Building on this first success, we were ecstatic to see 125 people including yourself, {{ FirstName | default: 'Friend' }}, fill the Filament Theater to capacity for a ninety-minute conversation as we traced movements for and against open housing on the Northwest Side from the past, to the present, to a discussion of the future.

The presentations and community discussion were energizing and informative. Please share the summary below with friends and neighbors and read Chicago Magazine’s coverage of the panel.

That our community came together to discuss what we can do to transform Chicago’s history of racist exclusion just a day before the horrific events in Charlottesville, Virginia is not lost on any of us. Like many of us, you may be wondering where we should turn as a community in our grief and horror at the violence that unfolded when the racist “Unite the Right” rally left scores injured and three dead.

Today, we respond as a community by continuing to mobilize ourselves, in order to mobilize “our city’s better nature”. We are writing to invite you to join Neighbors for Affordable Housing and become an even bigger part of the work together to build a Northwest Side that is open, inclusive, vibrant, diverse and equitable. We know that some factions in our community are issuing calls for the Northwest Side to unite around racial fear and hatred. Against this backdrop--- and seeing what can happen at its extreme--- we know that we must continue the work together to build a community rooted in love, care, connection across difference, and commitment to equity and racial justice. By doing so, we will help our city become more of the kind of city we aspire to be.

Please consider joining us today!