Robin Rue Simmons (born March 12, 1976) is an American former politician and national leader for local

reparations Reparation(s) may refer to: Christianity * Restitution (theology), the Christian doctrine calling for reparation * Acts of reparation, prayers for repairing the damages of sin History *War reparations **World War I reparations, made from G ...

for

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

. Rue Simmons was born and raised in the largely segregated 5th Ward of

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

. From 2017 to 2021, Rue Simmons served as the alderman of the 5th Ward. As alderman, she led the passage of the United States' first government-funded reparations legislation. The local reparations initiative is being funded by the first $10 million of adult-use cannabis sales tax revenue collected by the City of Evanston. The first stage of the reparations program is focused on homeownership. After leaving office, Rue Simmons now serves as the chair of the City of Evanston's Reparations Committee. Rue Simmons is Founder and Executive Director of the not-for-profit FirstRepair, which "informs local reparations, nationally." She also is a commissioner of the National African-American Reparations Commission, a lifetime member of the

National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America The National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N'COBRA) is an organization that advocates for financial compensation for the descendants of former slaves in the United States. History The National Coalition of Blacks for Reparatio ...

, a board member of Connections for the Homeless, and previously served as a board member of the

National League of Cities The National League of Cities (NLC) is an advocacy organization in the United States that represents the country's 19,495 cities, towns, and villages along with 49 state municipal leagues. Created in 1924, it has evolved into a leading membership ...

' National Black Caucus of Local Elected Leaders.

References

1976 births Living people African-American politicians Reparations Reparations for slavery 21st-century American politicians 21st-century African-American people African-American people in Illinois politics Minority rights activists Social justice activists {{Illinois-politician-stub