This survey is the work of the Evanston Equity and Empowerment Commissions, a group of volunteer residents helping guide the City's racial equity initiatives. The Evanston Community Equity Survey is a key part of assessing the impact of our collective efforts for racial equity, annually.

For the purposes of this survey, we define racial equity as “the condition that would be achieved if one’s racial identity no longer predicted, in a statistical sense, how one fares. When we use the term, we are thinking about racial equity as one part of racial justice, and thus we also include work to address root causes of inequities, not just their manifestations. This includes elimination of policies, practices, attitudes, and cultural messages that reinforce differential outcomes by race or fail to eliminate them.” (www.equitytools.org) Hence, we define a community racial equity issue as a community issue that disproportionately affects BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) communities.

This is the first of what we hope to make an annual survey and it attempts to measure the perspectives of those who live, work, and go to school in Evanston, including satisfaction with City services, neighborhood quality, housing affordability, feelings about the state of racial equity in the city, and the role of government in addressing racial inequities.
While the history of our nation and community demands that we prioritize race in discussions of equity, we do take advantage of this survey to investigate other ways in which the community can be more just for other identities as well.

This survey is likely to take 8-10 minutes to complete. Thank you in advance for your time.
Scope of the Inequity Issue and Government Responsibility

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* 1. Ending racial inequity is a responsibility of government

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* 2. To address inequity, resources must be allocated based on need, not always equally allocated.

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* 3. How confident are you in the Evanston Police Department's ability to treat BIPOC and White people equally?

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* 4. Have you or someone in your family moved out of Evanston in the past three years due to the cost of housing?

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* 5. The City of Evanston is responsible for strategically planning for and providing affordable and mixed income housing.

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* 6. How likely is it that you will be able to afford to live in Evanston in five years?

Core Equity Issues
Definition: BIPOC = Black, Indigenous and People of Color

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* 7. How significant of a RACIAL EQUITY problem are these issues for YOUR HOUSEHOLD

  Not an Issue Minor Issue Not Sure Somewhat of an Issue Major Issue
Housing Affordability
Economic Opportunity - BIPOC Youth
Economic Opportunity - Jobs - BIPOC Adults
Economic Opportunity - BIPOC Owned Businesses
Police Treatment of BIPOC Communities
Racial Inequities in our School
Health Care Access
Language Access/Translated Communications
Disproportionate City resource allocation by Ward

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* 8. How significant of a RACIAL EQUITY problem are these issues for Evanston as a larger community? (Does not have to be your immediate experience).

  Not an Issue Minor Issue Not Sure Somewhat of an Issue Major Issue
Housing Affordability
Economic Opportunity - BIPOC Youth
Economic Opportunity - Jobs - BIPOC Adults
Economic Opportunity - BIPOC Owned Businesses
Police Treatment of BIPOC Communities
Racial Inequities in our School
Health Care Access
Language Access/Translated Communications
Disproportionate City resource allocation by Ward

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* 9. Of the equity issues above which do you consider the community of Evanston's most important issue? Please select one.

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* 10. Of the equity issues above which do you consider the community of Evanston's second most important issue? Please select one.

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* 11. Are there equity issues that you see as critical that are not named above? Why is this a critical issue in your eyes?

City of Evanston's Leadership's (Mayor, City Council, and City Manager) response to Racial Equity Issues

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* 12. How would you rate the City of Evanston's commitment to racial justice and equity?

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* 13. How do you view the City of Evanston's commitment and progress on racial equity?

  Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree Nor Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
Racial equity is a Priority for this City
The City is actively examining the role of racism in community outcomes
The City is actively changing its policies to create systemic racial equity
I have seen tangible improvements towards racial equity
City staff has an appropriate understanding of racial equity

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* 14. Can you name a racial justice initiative undertaken by the City of Evanston in the last 3 years?

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* 15. Are there any racial justice initiatives undertaken by the City of Evanston in the last 3 years that have been SUCCESSFUL?

Experiencing Equity & A Sense of Belonging
In addition to the systemic changes that are needed to create a more equitable and just community, we want to consider how people are currently experiencing life in Evanston. This will help us understand how we as the community of Evanston need to improve in addition to systemic changes by the City leadership.

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* 16. For the next few questions, select one option between each set of adjectives that best represents how you would rate the community of Evanston based on your direct experiences here.

Hostile Neither Hostile Nor Welcoming Welcoming
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 17. .

Racist Anti-Racist
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 18. .

Segregated Integrated
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 19. .

Individualistic Collaborative / Collectivist
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 20. .

Homophobic Pro-All Sexual Orientations
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 21. .

Transphobic Pro-All Gender Identities
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 22. .

Unwelcoming Inclusive/Welcoming
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 23. .

Elitist Non-Elitist
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 24. .

Not Disability Friendly Disability Friendly
Clear
i We adjusted the number you entered based on the slider’s scale.

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* 25. Consider your experiences over the past 12 months, please indicate your level of agreement with each of the following statements:

  Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree Nor Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I feel valued as an individual in Evanston
I feel I belong in Evanston
The City of Evanston has a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion 
I have considered leaving Evanston because I felt isolated or unwelcome
I have found one or more communities or groups where I feel I belong
There is too much emphasis put on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in Evanston

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* 26. Over the past 12 months, how many times have YOU OR A MEMBER OF YOUR FAMILY experienced discriminatory events in Evanston? What aspect of your identity did the discrimination pertain to?

  Never 1-2 Times 3 of More Times
Disability status
Racial or ethnic identity
Sex
Sexual orientation
Gender Identity or Gender Expression
National Origin
Religion
First Language
Socio-economic status

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* 27. Over the past 12 months, how many times have you WITNESSED OTHERS experienced discriminatory events in Evanston? What aspect of their identity did the discrimination pertain to?

  Never 1-2 Times 3 of More Times
Disability status
Racial or ethnic identity
Sex
Sexual orientation
Gender Identity or Gender Expression
National Origin
Religion
First Language
Socio-economic status
Representation Matters 
We intentionally ask the questions below so that we can insure we are getting responses from all the populations in our community.

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* 28. What is your connection to Evanston?

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* 29. What ward do you live in?

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* 30. Please share your race and/or ethnicity

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* 31. Household Income

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* 32. Age

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* 33. Do you have a disability?

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* 34. Which best describes your housing situation?

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* 35. Is there anything else you would like to clarify or share with the Equity and Empowerment Commission that has not already been asked?

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