In an extraordinary organizing effort across 18 houses of worship, the Evanston Interfaith Community, in collaboration with Evanston Community Foundation, has donated over $1million to the nonprofit  Reparations Stakeholders Authority of Evanston (RSAE) as a way to champion and supplement the City of Evanston’s reparations fund. “The Interfaith Community: A Model Ally”, a 10-minute film, chronicles the unification of Evanston’s churches, synagogues and temples, which came together in support of the city’s historic reparations bill, passed in 2019.

Figuring prominently among those local religious leaders are Pastor Michael Nabors, of Second Baptist Church, and Rabbi Andrea London, of Beth Emet The Free Synagogue.  Pastor Nabors reminds viewers that, although their efforts were local, the Evanston reparations model has “shown the world the power of collaboration and mutual interdependence.” Rabbi London echoes this pride in Evanston’s interfaith community “at the forefront of the crucial effort to right the wrongs” and “provide concrete repair for the harm that has been done” as a result of racist policies, which she adds, is a “moral and spiritual obligation.”  Pastor Monte Dillard, of First Church of God, commends the “willingness of the interfaith community to support this work in tremendous ways.” 

Leading their congregations in study, reflection and conversation, Evanston’s religious leaders made space for reparations education not only in their sermons, but by displaying redlining exhibits, in which members could see tangible effects of racism in their community, reading closely the works of Ta-Nehisi Coates, screening the documentary The Big Payback, (featuring the story of the City of Evanston’s reparations program,) listening closely to each other, and, in the meantime, raising $1 million dollars for the cause.

FirstRepair lifts up the interfaith movement in Evanston as “an ideal ally” and a “bright model of impactful community-led repair.”