This summer, a tour of the city's west side highlighted just how much of a historical and artistic gem the area is, and that parts of it are flourishing. On July 3, a city agency–led tour highlighted a few of 47 community-driven creative placemaking grant projects aimed at promoting racial healing and neighborhood revitalization. It was part of a series initiated by the city's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) under its Together We Heal Creative Place (TWHCP) cultural grant program.
Launched in 2022, TWHCP is a response from DCASE and the city's Office of Equity and Racial Justice (OERJ) to the need for racial equity and community healing in neighborhoods historically affected by everything from discrimination to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tours aim to bring people together to experience these projects as well as the beauty of the neighborhoods that they represent. Historian Shermann "Dilla" Thomas was invited to participate as he runs his own tour series, Chicago Mahogany Tours, that specializes in unraveling the hidden history of Chicago neighborhoods.
Carla Kupe is the chief equity officer of the Mayor's Office of Equity and Racial Justice. Her appointment was announced by Mayor Johnson during a city Juneteenth event this summer. Credit: Andrew Davis July's tour was mostly on an air-conditioned bus, with stops where attendees received greetings, information, and, sometimes, food.
The tour group comprised a mixture of west-side community members, DCASE and OERJ staff members, and TWHCP program consultants and grantees. Representatives from the mayor's office, Dr. Meida McNeal (DCASE deputy commissioner of cultural grants and resources) and OERJ chief equity officer Carla Kupe, were also present.
These are people who aim to show that the west side is a hub of creativity, knowledge, and history—just as much as Chicago's other areas. A historian like none other Within a few moments of meeting Thomas, one discovers that he's not your..
. Andrew Davis.
