Known for its high number of shootings and open illegal drug market, the Austin community on Chicago’s far west side struggles between its bad rap, high levels of poverty and lack of jobs and resources. Providing a life line to its residents are organizations like the Institute For Non-Violence Chicago, Westside Health Authority, and Amplify, doing their part to rebuild the community and it’s name. This episode follows Artimmeo, a re-entry specialist at the Institute for Non-Violence Chicago, and others as they’ve established a code to support and assist residents in need.
Known for its high number of shootings and open illegal drug market, the Austin community on Chicago’s far west side struggles between its bad rap, high levels of poverty and lack of jobs and resources. Providing a life line to its residents are organizations like the Institute For Non-Violence Chicago, Westside Health Authority, and Amplify, doing their part to rebuild the community and it’s name. This episode follows Artimmeo, a re-entry specialist at the Institute for Non-Violence Chicago, and others as they’ve established a code to support and assist residents in need.
Narrator: [00:00:00] Change Agents.
In Chicago's Austin neighborhood, residents are fighting. Fighting to rebuild the neighborhood as a safe place to raise a family and thrive as a community. Here's journalist Kortni Smyers-Jones and activist Mayne Williamson with One Code, One Austin.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: About 50 years ago, Austin was home to middle class families. It thrived with successful businesses like Brock's Candy Company, which was one of the country's largest candy companies during this time.
[00:01:00] Zenith was another successful enterprise, which produced TVs and radios. This was once a rich community with Plentiful jobs and thousands of cottages and two flats.
It had large apartment buildings and factories that employ many. It was a community that looked after one another. This is Austin, an inner city community on the West side of Chicago.
Unfortunately today, Austin is famous for having more homicides than any other area in Chicago and home to one of the largest open air drug markets still around.
Bennett Lee: When we moved to Austin in 1966, uh, 4900 West on Jackson. During that time, we were like one out of three black families that lived on that block.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: That's Bennett Lee.
He also goes by Benny Lee. Benny Lee was one of the first [00:02:00] black families in that community at that time. So he's seen firsthand how Austin's changed generation after generation. And the turn Austin has taken, is not the one Benny Lee remembers.
Bennett Lee: Majority of the blacks, middle class, lived in the 4700 block.
predominantly in between like, uh, Madison and Harrison. That's when you see a lot of Blacks from the South Side as well coming over there for entertainment.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: The Austin that Benny Lee shares created more opportunities for African American people. Austin was actually one of the first African American communities back in the 1850s.
They attracted families, middle class workers, and young adults. Today, Austin is 83 percent African American.
Artimmeo Williamson: I knew of Benny Lee by the stories my family had told me about him. He grew up in the neighborhood, had run ins with the law. But he came home and transformed his life. I'm Artimmeo. But everybody called me Mame [00:03:00] because they say my name too hard.
I grew up in Austin too, but I came along 20 years after Benny. He knew a different Austin than what I came up in.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: I met Benny Lee through a mutual friend. And much like you, I only heard great things. I was told he was the godfather of Austin. He's a true historian by experience, really.
Bennett Lee: You had lounges going down, like from Harrison and Cicero you had the New Natural Club, then a block over you had the Burberry Cage right at Van Buren and Cicero.
Across the street you had the Holiday Inn Lounge, and then a block over from Gladys you had the Twinklin Star. So that was an era where we had a lot of Activities going on.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: [00:04:00] I'm Kortni Smyers- Jones and I'll be one of the hosts for this podcast with One Code One Austin coming from Oakland, California. I know what it's like to want more for your community. What was once a place known for its booming transit system throughout the Bay Area, warm climate, and home to the revolutionary Black Panther Party, that quickly shifted, leaving an increase in poverty, crime, and urban blight.
Cost of living is shot up, leaving more and more people out of jobs. Nowadays, it's referred to as Tent City. I grew up in East Oakland, where it wasn't a surprise to hear about a shootout on a day to day basis. It was expected. Like any city, though, it's had its good areas. [00:05:00] But it was no shock to turn on the news and hear about another homicide.
I left Oakland to attend college in Champaign, then later Chicago. I've learned so much about Chicago by living here. My first thought was, man, the city has cities inside of cities. It's so big. I'll never figure out how to get around. But now I consider Chicago my second home. And if you call something home, you protect it.
Bennett Lee: Austin, the Blacks, we were infringing on their communities, you know, their schools and their jobs and things. White started moving out. And when the white started moving out, The resources left with them, you know, the representation we had down in city hall kind of left, right. And then you start seeing companies shutting down, you know, and so when you look in Austin [00:06:00] now, those companies, those factories I've talked about, they're no longer around, you know, it seemed like the last of them left, like in the last of the seventies and early eighties.
And so that kind of depleted resources in Austin and, uh, then it's predominantly black now. Uh, and, and, and the blacks have larger families than whites. So that's a larger population of youth.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: The lack of jobs too often means people are out of work. People can't support themselves or their families.
People get desperate. Drugs and crimes move into the neighborhood, trapping everybody. Some people will make choices that don't go too well.
Artimmeo Williamson: When I got out of prison, I had the mindset of going back to my community and changing the shit that was going on. Evelyn, I'm Madeline. Evelyn? Yeah. Yes, ma'am. May I have your address?
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Now, Mayne is an [00:07:00] outreach worker at the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago. So he works directly in the community, mentoring those who have just got released from prison, supporting families who have lost loved ones, and connecting people with jobs or job training programs, and donating food weekly. And during this pandemic, none of that stopped.
In fact, his workload doubled. When the government issued out stimulus checks, his organization made sure people knew about it. They set up tents in different parts of Austin and West Garfield asking people if they received it, and assisted them further if they didn't.
Artimmeo Williamson: We want everybody to know that this applies to you, too.
You a person coming home from prison, sometimes you in this bubble. Sometimes you treated differently. You might not think certain things apply to you or even keep up with what's going on in the world. Same goes for the low income communities. And sometimes they might not have the resources to get the things we're talking about.
So that's where we step in.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Because this community is already labeled as unsafe, it doesn't have the [00:08:00] same opportunities or services offered as other neighborhoods. Maine sees his role as a link to make those options available.
Artimmeo Williamson: I made a vow to myself that when I'm released, I'm going to try to make a difference in my community.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: How was your childhood? Was it then when you started to get into trouble?
Artimmeo Williamson: My childhood was pretty amazing. I went chasing the glitz and the glam of the streets. I played basketball. That was my way to avoid all that. Then I started seeing the guys that I hung out with, with nice clothes, nicer shoes, nicer cars, the pretty women.
So what do you do? You know, I wanted to be accepted. So I fell right into that trap and ultimately led me into numerous rounds with the police. I really got into selling drugs because I knew my grandparents could use the money. They busted they asses to make sure that me and my siblings were straight.
And now that I'm a number IDOC. It can never be erased.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Maine was convicted and sentenced [00:09:00] to 18 years to the Illinois Department of Corrections, or IDOC, for the intention to sell drugs. During the nine years he served, he had a huge awakening after his brother was killed.
Artimmeo Williamson: And I remember sitting in that cell, it burned like hell, that I was never going to see my brother again.
So after the funeral, I sat there numb, didn't want to talk. I was just sitting there like, I don't want nobody to go through what I went through.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: According to IDOC, Austin and West Garfield ranked fourth, fifth, and sixth among the state's largest return inmate population. West Garfield and Austin have the most convicted felons returning home. Maine was a part of the largest group to return back home in 2013. The often revolving door from the streets to prison means too many are caught in the cycle of crime or violence.
Artimmeo Williamson: Nearly every day I get a call about a [00:10:00] shooting that took place in either Austin or West Garfield Park. And my job is to stop the folks from retaliating and help their families involved in the shootings or the victims of the shootings.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: According to Wall Street Journal, Chicago has the second most homicides in the United States.
Violent crimes are 146 percent higher than the national average. I counted 50 violent crimes reported in Austin in the span of just a little over two weeks.
Artimmeo Williamson: Holiday weekends are the most opportune time for violence to occur. On Labor Day weekend 2020, 53 people got shot, 10 people got killed. According to ABC News, that was the most number of people shot on the weekend since the early 1990s.
But the perception with gun violence is that gangbangers stop shooting each other over drug territory. But the reality is clicks on social media over stupid shit. The tragedy are innocent people getting caught in the middle.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Like Heaven [00:11:00] Sutton, who was shot and killed in a crossfire in 2012.
Ashaki Banks : Heaven was, um, my only girl, seven years old.
Um, very independent, smart to be seven years old. Um, we had a candy store in front of our house. She was shot and killed. Um, But we're sitting outside just enjoying the summer.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: This is Ashaki Banks. I met her at an outreach event she was working with Maine. She works at the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago as a victim advocate where she supports victims of crimes.
Heaven is the reason she's able to continue to do this type of work. So families will never have to experience what she experienced.
Ashaki Banks: She's been gone now eight years, and her life has still really touched a lot of people. I still get a lot of feedback on pictures that I share on Facebook at nighttime.
I've been out here since my baby died, day and night, blood, sweat, and tears. With my job and without my job, just trying to help and give back. [00:12:00]
Um,
I asked God for the job. Um, it's straight to carry on to help other people. And he did just that. Me and the shock. He connected because we both lost love on the gun violence.
Artimmeo Williamson: Her daughter, my brother.
When I found out how her daughter was brutally murdered, that made me feel like a sense of compassion towards her. And it made me develop a sense of respect. Just the fact that she lost her child in front of her and she continued to do this type of work and help other victims of gun violence, you know, in a family that lost a loved one and she had the strength to walk them through that.
That's amazing to me.
Ashaki Banks: If we want our community to be what we want it to be, we have to start paying attention and we have to start respecting our community and building it up. And those are the things and the morals that happened back in the 70s and early 80s. But then when you [00:13:00] have, uh, this drug wave and, and, and violence and all of these, uh, you know, all these different things that happen and it changes it, it changes it, but we still have the power.
If we come together and remain on cold, we can get those things done.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: That's Joseph Green. He works at the Westside Health Authority as a Reentry Community Support Coordinator at Westside Health Authority. Westside Health Authority was founded by Jacqueline Reed in the late 80s. She wanted to create a place where young men coming home from prison had a place to go.
She made Westside Health Authority a trusted, safe haven for community members. The youth programs they offer, substance abuse counseling, workforce development, all of those classes were a positive place for young people to learn and hang out. And it helped keep the violent activities down in Austin and West Garfield Park.[00:14:00]
Artimmeo Williamson: Joseph and I met during a CSAC meeting, and CSAC stands for Community Support Advisory Council. And this is where all the re entry entities meet, and we share our community resources. When my family moved to Austin, I actually played in Westside Health Authority basketball tournaments growing up. They had all kinds of programs back then too, like computer training, adult literacy programs.
You know, kids in Austin didn't have a YMCA, so this was ours.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Programs like Westside's and Institute for Nonviolence provide more than just activities and advice. Staff like Joseph and Mayne Bring personal support and commitment to each of the people they help.
Tabitha Washington: When I say anybody could have gave up on me, I, but Mayne never, him or the program never gave up on me.
So I, I gained a lot from them.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: That's Tabitha Washington. She was introduced to Mayne after she lost her sister and [00:15:00] while she was going through trial for murder.
Artimmeo Williamson: When I found out about INVC, I was like, this is my road to really help people with a lot of resources behind me. Tabitha had lost everything when I met her.
Her kids, her job, I mean everything. I took her to court hearings, sat with her and supported her. Fought alongside her to help her get her kids back and connected her with jobs. Honestly, these are the things I would do with or without my job.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: I got to see firsthand how the work Maine does is naturally within him.
He's genuine and he really understands the term, paying it forward and getting Austin violence free again.
Melissa Green: I don't know how a lot of people grew up, but how I grew up is that we could, you know, come outside and people could sit on the porch and just, you know, [00:16:00] the older people sit on the porch. We could play outside.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: That's Melissa Green. Her boyfriend, Zedrick Smith, was a client of Maine's, and she was born and raised in Austin when it was a different kind of place.
Melissa Green: It was always safe because everybody on the block knew each other. Everybody was outside, so they looked after your kids. But how it is now, I have a son, and I don't even want him to be outside. Just because of, it's not even safe just to be outside because of so many kids getting killed. So Mainly from the ages 12 to down, even newborns, and I have a newborn, so I'm very, like, cautious wherever we go.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Unfortunately, Zed passed away before meeting his new baby boy.
Artimmeo Williamson: I was hurt when we lost Zed. I looked at him like a little brother. I knew I had to be there for Mel even more.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Maine was there from the beginning when Zed needed help finding a job, to sticking by the family during an extremely hard [00:17:00] time, like planning his funeral. I
Artimmeo Williamson: When she asked me to be the Godfather, I felt honored.
I was happy to be there for Lizzie.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Addressing the violence is more than locking people up for crimes or avoiding certain blocks. It's creating individual relationships with the people in the community. To Ashaki Banks, it also means trying to figure out the missing piece of why the violence happens. I wanted to know why these young men were so angry with these guns.
Ashaki Banks: So I see it. It just, they need more love. They need more hugs. We do have the resources. It's just up to them to take them.
Artimmeo Williamson: Last summer I was riding a bike and I was riding a bike down Pine on my way to the store and I just rode the bike into a middle of a shootout and they was shooting and I'm riding the bike trying to get out of their way.
It's been like a lot of [00:18:00] times. It's been times where I've just been standing outside on the front and a student occur like literally right across the street. People done died in my arms, all type of stuff, it's just crazy.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: This is Tezi. He's a Chicago rapper, and he talks about growing up and living on the west side in his music.
Tezi: It's crazy where I stay, it be murders everyday, we be banging at the park so it ain't no place to play. You could call it fun, you could call it anything but safe, like we was trying so hard but we just missed it. The plate trying to keep my faith, but I'm always questioning my fate. Picturing the day my homie got killed in my face.
We was where he stayed the
same. Not only is it so many different gangs, it's like these gangs are so close to each other. Like it could be one gang on this block and you go two blocks over is another gang.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Today's gangs are not the organized gangs of the sixties and seventies or even Al Capone days.
They're more clique groups of people on one block fighting with groups from another block. The spark for much of the violence is social media bullying and challenges. [00:19:00] The more clicks, the better.
Artimmeo Williamson: If you take jobs and neglect our community, what you think these guys gonna do? They gonna turn to violence and the gangs, and unfortunately for some of them, they gonna end up dead or in jail.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Not everyone is trapped in this cycle of violence, though. Young people like Tezi are taking the path away from violence with support and encouragement from people like Mayne.
Artimmeo Williamson: Tezi's my nephew. The work really started, you know, subconsciously. With him, my other nephews, my friends kids, and stuff like that.
I started getting them together and let them know what I went through, and this not the way.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Charles Brown is another example of a life in Austin without violence or crime.
Charles Brown: I grew up like my teen years, mainly like in the heart of the Austin area, like right around the corner from Austin Town Hall. You always got to watch where you at.
But I feel like I did a good job of being peaceful. I've never lived like a street life. I never live a gang life, but I have [00:20:00] people who've been involved in it. But you know, that's
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Charles is a recent graduate from a community program called Amplify. They prepare young men for jobs in tech, engineering, and science.
They also reach hands on skills like construction, financial planning, and investment. At the graduation ceremony, Charles was recognized as one of the lead team players.
Amplify Director: Um, talk about a few of the, the talent as well. You know, when you have a team that comes together, you need that person, right? You need that person that cares for the team.
And this person, um, just exemplifies that, um, hands down. And so I am, uh, it's my privilege to offer the Team Player Award to Charles Blue Brown. I just
gotta love you, Chris. Congratulations.
Charles Brown: I got to say, I had no idea
like how much y'all mean to me. I don't want to take the time away from the [00:21:00] grad, but I love y'all so dearly.
Appreciate it. When you standing still, I would say, and like, and you can't, you feel like you can't walk no more, then Amplify was that push for me. Amplify was definitely that push for me, and I do not know how my life would be right now if I wasn't in Amplify. I have structure. I have a lot more structure in my mind and in my life because of Amplify.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: But programs and organizations can't do all of the work. It takes commitment from everyone.
Bennett Lee: Everybody is going to have to step up. If we really want to make the change that we want to make. It's going to take everybody.
Artimmeo Williamson: Austin led the city in homicides in 2016. But in 2018, they experienced the largest decrease in the homicides of any district.
IMBC opened in 2016 as well. So I like to say that we had a lot to do with the decrease in 2018. [00:22:00]
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Austin is also considered a food desert. It's left with just save a lot and food for less. I asked Melissa where does she do her grocery shopping?
Melissa Green: I go to Oak Park. I do not go to my neighborhood. I go to Pete's.
I don't go to my neighborhood because number one, there is no grocery stores. And number two, the ones that is there, they're not safe.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Oak Park is a safe west suburb right outside of Austin, and it's 67 percent white.
Artimmeo Williamson: And since Austin history proves it was a resourceful community once upon a time, I'm going to remain in it until, you know, we get there.
INVC has been around for four years and I've already noticed the dent we're making in this community.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: What is it that you ultimately want to see in Austin?
Artimmeo Williamson: I just want Austin to have a chance. This community doesn't deserve to be forgotten about. Austin is a huge part of my life, a huge part of my family's history.
And it's important for me to know that my [00:23:00] kids can just be kids here and not worried about, you know, being shot or shot at or any violence occurring, anything like that. Austin has done it before. We was that community where it was a safe haven for our kids to grow up. And I know we can reach that again.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: And Joseph Green from Westside Health Authority agrees.
Joseph Green: What I want to see in Austin and in Chicago period is just Us, um, creating and generating the wealth that we deserve, you know, creating the platform so that the future is where it's going to be.
Artimmeo Williamson: I want to change the perception of Austin because it's a lot of people who's giving up on our communities.
This community is going to thrive again. This community is going to be a safe haven for our kids. This community is going to be an up and coming community where people can come in our community and not worry about Getting shot and patronize our stores [00:24:00] and business come back and we can rebuild our community together.
That's my goal for Austin and that's what I want. I'm Maine Williamson.
Kortni Smyers-Jones: Thanks for listening. I'm Kortni Smyers-Jones.
Tezi: All the same to me. And when I'm gone, mama, you could put the blame on me. Your first child had me at only 18. Having kids that young, you really ain't no place for dreams. So at the end, I hope that I'm forgave. If you never had me wonder what you could have, I'm.
Narrator: Thank you for joining Change Agents, produced by Juneteenth Productions, with funding support from the Chicago Community Trust. And the field [00:25:00] foundation, please subscribe to our series on Apple podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you find podcasts. Do you have a story to share? Join us in the ongoing conversation on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and our website changeagentsthepodcast.com.