NEW INITIATIVE SEEKS TO MAKE RECOVERY EQUITABLE

Mayor Lori L. Lightfoot joined business leaders and partners from the philanthropic community to announce the Together We Rise initiative. The goal of the initiative is to help in the economic recovery of those affected by COVID-19 in the Black and Latinx communities. Photo courtesy of Heidi Zeiger
Mayor Lori L. Lightfoot joined business leaders and partners from the philanthropic community to announce the Together We Rise initiative. The goal of the initiative is to help in the economic recovery of those affected by COVID-19 in the Black and Latinx communities. Photo courtesy of Heidi Zeiger

 New initiative seeks to make recovery equitable

BY TIA CAROL JONES
     Chicago Community Trust has announced a new initiative which is meant to assist those who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 recover through equitable and just means.
Together We Rise is a more than $25 million initiative from Chicago Community Trust, along with philanthropic commitments and corporate commitments from PepsiCo and JP Morgan Chase.
The goal is to ensure communities that have felt the impact of COVID-19 worse, Black and Latinx communities, are able to recover economically, in hopes that they will become stronger and more resilient.
     “There is no greater time than now for us to reimagine our future as we rebuild stronger by focusing on inclusive, resilient growth that places Black and Latinx communities, historically left behind, at the center of our recovery,” said Helene Gayle, president and CEO of Chicago Community Trust. “As the region’s community foundation, we stand committed to working alongside diverse stakeholders to reimagine systems that perpetuate racial and ethnic wealth inequity.”
     JP Morgan Chase has introduced a new program to help entrepreneurs in underserved areas gain access to coaching, technical assistance and capital. The goal is to provide more than 1,500 Black and Latinx small businesses with one-on-one mentorship and digital education to help them grow.
     JP Morgan Chase also has committed to increasing homeownership among 3,000 Black and Latinx families in the Chicagoland area, by extending an additional $600 million in home lending to families in those communities throughout the next five years.
     Damion Heron is the head of Chicago Community Engagement for JP Morgan Chase. Heron said JP Morgan Chase is making a $30 billion commitment to advancing racial equity and this announcement with Together We Rise, was just part of the broader announcement from the company.
     Heron said JP Morgan Chase wanted to get involved in Together We Rise because it recognizes there is a racial wealth gap and some of the changes Chase is suggesting can close that gap and provide more opportunities for more people on the city’s South and West sides.
      Heron said the process of deciding to make this commitment to communities in Chicago involved roundtable conversations with input and feedback with subject matter experts across the city, in partnership with foundation partners and the city of Chicago.
      “What you’re seeing is the culmination of months of listening and gathering input and we brought that back to the senior most leaders within the firm and decided to make an investment worthy of this great city and the residents of the South and West sides,” he said.
      According to Heron, the investments will help more South and West side homeowners afford homes and save money through refinancing, which translates into “money in their pockets at the end of the day.”

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