Water debt is crushing low-income Chicagoans and disproportionately affecting Black residents. Over the past decade, Chicago homeowners have racked up over $620 million in water debt. More than 60% of the debt is concentrated in the city’s majority-Black ZIP codes. WBEZ Chicago’s water debt project traces a decade-long trend to uncover how we got here.

The project goes on to explore current policies and programs, including relationships between city government and third-party law firms who profit handsomely from aggressive collection tactics, which continue to drive excessive debt and rob Black communities of generational wealth.

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Bringing Stories Home

Bringing Stories Home

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Land Rights

Land Rights
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Governance

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Racial Justice

Racial Justice
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Water and Sanitation

Water and Sanitation