05/21/2026
"UnBlocked Englewood is Tonika Lewis Johnson’s innovative idea to help solve years of disinvestment on the 6500 block of South Aberdeen Street — less than a mile away from where she grew up... According to Johnson, 15 homes on the block — that she knows of — were affected by predatory Land Sale Contracts. Those homes were included in her Inequity for Sale project. However, there are 24 homes on the 6500 block of South Aberdeen Street in total. Through UnBlocked Englewood, Johnson — with the Chicago Bungalow Association making all the repairs — has restored 18 of them so far." - The TRiiBE
NEW — Social justice artist and MacArthur Fellow Tonika Lewis Johnson stopped by The TRiiBE Studio in Chicago to talk about her latest project, UnBlocked Englewood, an arts-driven beautification project providing home repairs on blocks directly impacted by predatory housing practices.
UnBlocked Englewood is Johnson’s innovative idea to help solve years of disinvestment on the 6500 block of South Aberdeen Street — less than a mile away from where she grew up on Chicago’s South Side.
“We don’t have to wait on policy. We don’t have to wait on a president. We don’t have to wait on reparations, and we haven’t,” Johnson said. “Because of this project, especially since it’s been going on for a few years, we can now say that these specific types of homes need this amount of money to do these specific repairs — repairs that the majority of people in Black disinvested neighborhoods need help to do. So after this project is complete, we can say, ‘Oh, if you want to actually help stabilize one block, you need this amount of money.’”
Read the full story: https://thetriibe.com/2026/05/inside-unblocked-englewood-tonika-lewis-johnsons-vision-for-healing-one-south-side-block/
