The Oak Park Regional Housing Center’s executive director, Rob Breymaier, said he recently spent three days in Washington, D.C., with leaders from the Chicago area to discuss many of the issues facing the region and nation. Among these, he said, was the need to find new ways to promote racial integration and build inclusive communities.
As a member of this year’s class of Leadership Greater Chicago, Breymaier and others met with White House staffers as well as Sen. Dick Durbin to discuss federal policy, and share their expertise on subjects in which they have experience.
“I spoke to them about concerns and hopes regarding HUD,” said Breymaier. “With my cohort and those we met in D.C., I also shared how we promote integration here and how it could be replicated across the nation.”
There’s an understanding among visionary leaders that we cannot have a thriving nation if we are divided by race, said Breymaier. Now more than ever, in this divisive social climate, the commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity must be demonstrated, he said.
“The presidential campaign and election brought a lot of hate and division to the forefront of American society,” said Breymaier. “It has caused an increase in racial tensions that is reverberating in how people consider where they will consider living.”
According to its website, the Oak Park Regional Housing Center was launched in 1972 after the village studied the “troubling social changes taking place east of Austin Boulevard and made a concerted effort to bring about an effective approach to integration that would break the pattern of block-by-block racial change.” The Housing Center, located at 1041 South Blvd., works with the village and other local agencies to coordinate a multifaceted effort to promote and sustain the community’s rich diversity.
The Housing Center is the only thing standing between Oak Park and segregation, said Breymaier.
“Without our services and leadership, the community would not be integrated,” he said. “We would probably remain diverse, but our neighborhoods would be segregated.”
“That would have many undesirable and expensive consequences. We would see an erosion of harmony and community spirit, we would also experience negative trends regarding school integration,” Breymaier added. “The overall change would harm property values and pride of place. Additionally, we would lose our brand in the region that makes Oak Park stand out.”
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This year, the Housing Center took a big financial hit and lost about 10 percent of its budget, said Breymaier. It has had to cut back on all sorts of things from supplies and professional services to reduced staff, he said.
Breymaier said the Housing Center needs to raise $80,000 by Dec. 31. If that doesn’t happen, “we will end the year with a deficit,” said Breymaier. “It will require us to remain contracted for the beginning of 2017 rather than have the staff and services needed for the community.”
Donations will make a big difference right now, said Breymaier. People can donate at www.oprhc.org/donate, he said.
“If folks are interested in being trained as volunteers to help people find an apartment in Oak Park, we’d be grateful for that as well,” said Breymaier.
Felicia Dechter is a freelance columnist for Pioneer Press.