Black and Latino Coalitions

In the City of Chicago, many groups and individuals in low-income communities, especially those that are predominantly African American and Latino, believe that municipal programs designed to deliver resources to neighborhoods and special needs communities are not reaching sectors with the greatest needs for public services. A survey of residents conducted by the Chicago Sun Times and Northwestern University in four different neighborhoods showed that perceptions of quality of services and the equity of their distribution varied according to income and race (Brune 1994). ¹ Of those surveyed, more than half from communities with higher median family incomes and lower percentages of people of color (more than 85% White) rated public services to be “good” or “very good,” while more than half from communities with lower median family incomes and higher percentages of people of color viewed city services as “very poor” or “fair,” with only 25% believing that services were “good” or “very good.”