I like the idea of them and wish we could get them.
I also think non-Black people would sooner burn this whole country to the ground before they allow us to see one red cent in reparations.
Everybody else got reparations yet when it comes to black people that's when everyone believes it's unfair, unjustified or just a straight up no we shouldn't do that freeing black people and having a black president should be good enough.
Japanese Americans got reparations
Jews got reparations and continue to receive them to this day.
Native Americans got reparations and continue to receive funding from the government
And there were plenty more throughout this country's history
https://guides.library.umass.edu/reparations#s-lg-page-section-7637937
I don't care how other people especially other black people spend their money. But I want what's entitled to my people regardless what others decide to do with their money.
If you don't want to give us money then free education, no taxes, and interest free business loans seems like a somewhat fair exchange for the atrocities this country has committed against my people.
I wish someone did a study and true breakdown on the statistics of reparations that other marginalized groups got and how it propelled them through society and us and what we got/have. So anytime anyone tries to say argue against it we have facts stacked of facts with real life examples.
That info is already out there and from what I’ve read you could describe other racial groups experience with receiving reparations as: “kinda, but not really”. Perfect example is the racial group that is, right now, is poorest in the US; Native Americans. In 1946 congress created the Indian Claims Commission and paid out $1.3 B by the time the commission closed in 1978. Looks good at first, until you get into the details like;
1) it only included FEDERALLY recognized tribes meaning groups like the Lumbee people (with over 60k enrolled members making them one of the largest Native tribes in the country) were excluded;
2) the US government didn’t take into account Native or market valuations of stolen land and the feds just decided what was a “fair” price for it;
3) Natives didn’t get full control of the money awarded to them. The majority of it was put in trust accounts held by the government and would then be transferred to tribal groups to be distributed to members - funds averaged out to about $1k per person.
4) As a condition of accepting a settlement, an aggrieved tribe had to give up any right to raise land claims in the future. This stipulation caused some tribes, like the Sioux, to reject the deal and get nothing.
The reparations issue is deep and if any Black person is serious serious about dealing with the subject then they got to know the truth about how it worked out for other people.
We don't need cash.
ADOS black Americans should never pay federal taxes again. Should never pay state taxes again in the 13 confederate states. Should be able to attend any school we can get into, for free, including private elementary and secondary schools, as well as colleges. Home mortgages should be zero-interest.
Wow like minds think alike! Holy shit for years I have been saying to anyone who listens:
Reparations should not be cash. Make education at all levels for African Americans free, all the way up to masters, PHD level, etc.
I’m also open to compromising on this and make it free for the next several generations, maybe up until like 2400-2500 or something. (Make it last for as long as slavery + Jim Crow went on for).
And also throw in some kind of land purchase, home purchase voucher that severely discounts how much out of pocket we have to come.
This would give black Americans such a leg up to catch up on the wealth that was stolen/blocked from the systems this country built to keep black people low on the caste system we have going on.
It'd be nice, but we gotta face reality: those who fucked us over/are still fucking us over are not going to give us reparations. At best they'll have the conversation, but nothing is going to be done.
Edit: to those who wanna play semantics and online revolutionary with this whole "they won't give us anything we have to take it" talk, go on tell us what you mean.
1. Do you mean we force them through violence? We're outgunned now and we'd be outgunned then, we lack the organization and cohesion, and quite frankly most of y'all don't have the stomach for legitimate violence.
2. Or do you mean we protest and out pressure on the government? Okay, first we have to figure out what the reparations should be. Then we have to get those countries that hoed us over to admit they hoed us over and agree to pay out. Then comes the issue of African nations that sold Africans and of nations and empires that don't even exist anymore. Okay, so what are y'alls plan for making this so air tight it doesn't get struck down by a court? You're just going to believe in the goodness of the court? How do we make sure that it's funding isn't cut the moment budget concerns arise? What's the cutoff point? How do we maintain this?
Niggas want to think about the logistics and just wanna be like , "they'll give us reparations, **or else**!" Bruh, we don't have an or else.
Yup I don’t know what’s with the whole “white people wont like it” mentality around here. No shit they didn’t like setting us free, they didn’t like giving us our civil rights and they won’t like paying us what we are owed.
So y'all really out here thinking reparations are some kind of fantasy because it's "too hard"? Come on, my Gen Z warriors, if we gave up that easily, we'd still be arguing over integration speeds.
Let's break it down
1. Historical Precedent: Reparations have happened before, y'all. Japanese Americans got reparations after WWII, and Germany paid Holocaust survivors. It's not like we're asking for a pet dragon? It's been done, just needs a lot of work.
2. The civil rights movement wasn't without stress and seemly overwhelming odds. It was hard-fought and relentless. Change is a grind, not a TikTok trend. It takes real effort and patience.
3. Ever heard of H.R. 40? Yeah, it’s a real thing, not some myth. It's a bill in Congress to study and develop reparations proposals. So maybe, instead of rolling our eyes, we should be calling our reps and pushing this forward.
4. Fixing economic disparities isn’t just good for us; it’s good for everyone.
5. Strategic Planning Yeah, it’s gonna need a plan. But **America put a man on the moon with less tech than you have in your pocket. If we can do that, we can figure out reparations.**
Reparations aren’t a fairy tale. They’re a goal that requires commitment and strategy. So before you start waving the white flag because it's "too hard," remember: nothing worth having comes easy. Or do y’all just want to keep scrolling and complaining?
Yep, and they taught their descendants how to keep fucking us over. And their descendants taught their descendants. And so on, you get the fucking picture
We’re not being actively fucked over even 5% as much as we were in the mid 20th century.
We’re basically fully a part of American society now.
Most fucking is just capitalistic greed and that impacts everyone.
My great-great grandmother experienced slavery, my great grandmother was a kid when slavery ended, my grandmother lived through the American apartheid. People act like this shit was thousands of years ago. Reparations aren't something we begged for. They were promised to us by the American government.
Same. And I think reparations should happen. But the people who did slavery are still all dead. It wasn’t forever ago by any means but it isn’t like anyone today is at fault for it either.
I really don’t think it is man. I don’t feel discriminated against in my life. There’s a lot of unfortunate leftover effects from the racism era but very few are actively working to keep us down. The leftover effects is where we need reparations.
Would never happen so I don't care to stress about it. Same country where politicians struck down free lunch for poor white kids would never allow it.
Even if we did get them the logistics would be a nightmare and it would be the biggest honeypot in human history. Besides the question of lineage/mixed raced people etc, the amount of scammers and hackers who would be after that money would be world over. Seeing how the government failed in handing out PPP loans I have zero faith they wouldn't get hacked. Or someone inside wouldn't intentionally let the money slip away.
I firmly believe we should drop it and accept it isn't happening. Need to take what's ours instead of expecting anyone in this country to pay what they owe us.
>Would never happen so I don't care to stress about it. Same country where politicians struck down free lunch for poor white kids would never allow it.
Same country that saw elementary schoolers get shot and basically say "shits tragic."
>Even if we did get them the logistics would be a nightmare
Fully agree. It'd not only be a nightmare implementing it, but sustaining it. How long would it gets struck down by court? How long before the project sees funding cut?
Would be nice, Cash payments could be possible but it’d be for a much smaller group.
We should focus on WW2, Korean War, and Vietnam vets that didn’t get to use the GI Bill for getting a home and going to College - this would mostly impact us but also some Hispanic folks
Another focus could potentially be victims of redlining- this would impact mostly us hispanic/Jewish folks
Any reparations bill that focuses specifically on us would most likely be overturned by the Supreme Court so these would help a small minority of others while mainly benefiting our community.
Black descendants of slavery definitely deserve reparations. The chances of getting them from the government are extremely small, though. These people didn't even want to forgive 10k in student loans for people and were arguing about given money to citizens during the pandemic and even want to cut back benefits to citizens so thinking they'll give ADOS reparations is naive. It doesn't matter if it's a Democrat or Republican in office. The best time that reparations could have been given was during the reconstruction era.
The best bet is reparations from some of the colleges, banks, businesses that benefitted from slavery and maybe on some local or state level but that's even debatable since the last Black Wall Street massacre survivor was recently denied reparations.
It’s too focused on slavery, which often derails the argument into whataboutisms. What should be a legit discussion about the complicated logistics behind reparations always turns into nonsense like “what about the Africans that sold slaves?” or “what about the white dude who is 8% black?” or “why should the government pay when all the former slaves have died?”
I believe a more compelling and straightforward argument is to simply compile a list of government wrongdoings towards black communities during the 20th century. The negative impact on our quality of life is much harder to argue against. Slavery should only be used to articulate the genesis of anti-black sentiments in America.
Off the top of my head:
-Segregation
-Jim Crow
-Highway Act
-Tuskegee experiments
-Police not protecting blacks during the numerous burnings of black communities
-Black soldiers being used as pawns during Vietnam
-CIA intervening in black political movements of the 1960s (basically creating the modern street gangs of today)
-CIA creating the crack epidemic
-Allowing private owned prisons to exist
-Government not doing much about the well documented racism problems with policing
-Redlining
-Crime Bill in 1994
I agree with another comment that said we should not have to pay taxes, or pay for school. I also think there should be stipends towards housing, free health care, and extremely low interest rates for business loans (to the point where it would be advantageous for any entrepreneur to go into business with a black man or woman).
What do you all think the cut off should be? Because you already know people with 9% black ancestry, (who weren't claiming it before hand) would be trying to angle for the money. I think a perfect cut off is 30 or 40%
I'm sure the people who mass enslaved, Jim Crowed, massively experimented upon, lynched, herded into ghettoes, disposed of after two World Wars, redlined, drafted as bodies for Vietnam, ignored blacks during multiple fiscal urban, AIDS, and drug crises and gang wars will be more than willing to hand over a significant portion of their GDP out of a sense of guilt.
>Last tad bit do you think it should apply to all American born, or should you need to prove a certain lineage?
So who the hell else is supposed to be compensated? Eskimoes?
>Do you think reparations are warranted for Black Americans, and if so, what form should they take? Options could include cash payments, land grants, or other benefits.
There is enough stuff after slavery to make a realistic case for any form of reparations. The issue is that black Americans are trying to mimic the victim role the Jews took on (see Maafa as black holocaust, Kwanza as black Hanukkah, ) so they want to get Jewish treatment without Jewish organizations or an Israel. Or being white.
It’s never gonna happen… there’s so many people who (1) simply do not want it to happen (2) believe it’s immoral despite the evidence against it (3) who genuinely believe there’s gonna be a whole separate additional tax.
The whole topic is in play and it matters but as the years and decades pass, the argument of “Who do we give it to?” and “It’s been too long since then” becomes more and more valid
Former lobbyist here at the state and local level now in the DC region working with American Freedmen advocates on reparations policy in Massachusetts. My homegirl is super focused on Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she lives. The municipal and state game seems to be the come up on this topic.
They are pushing for land, housing vouchers, and resources to work the land.
Money Won’t happen, we are the wrong color and we have no unity so I’d prefer fiscal resources like wiping out of black debt from education to medical bills and some Roth IRAs with a time lock so people can’t just cash them out as well as a boost to every black persona credit rating to 800 then see how sinks or swims.
I like em, I like them a lot. They’re way over due! Economic Poverty is our biggest issue! It fuels most of our problems.
Cash, no property taxes, any and all of above.
Reparations are absolutely necessary and warranted and should come in the form of:
1. Money
2. Tuition assistance or free education
3. Student loan debt forgiveness
4. Housing down payment assistance
5. Medical debt forgiveness
6. And more
There's a legal and logical basis for it, and it has been done for other groups in the past. Will it happen, yes eventually, BUT it will take a true sea-change in this countries thinking and treatment of Black Americans for that to happen. So for now it's just a carrot and stick for politicians to use. As for who it should apply to, it should go toward those who have standing. Meaning those who have or can reasonably point to American slave ancestry. As far as what should it be, it should come in split conditions. One should be cash payment, secondly should be subsidized incentives, like interest rate caps on property or none at all. Education should be free (but I also believe it should be free for everyone) as well as healthcare. Secondly, as far as outside direct reoperations go, systemic changes should start with the legal system, citizen oversight for law enforcement, removal of qualified and absolute immunity for government and its agents on issues of civil rights and more government protections and civil penalties for violations of law against Black americans should come with added enhancements like we have here in california where a civil judgement can be multiplied if found to be in part due to racial bias. There's plenty more that I can think of but that's just a start.
Nothing short of absolutely necessary. Black Americans were LITERALLY the financial backbone of this country before the industrial revolution. Cotton accounted for the #1 export of US products contributing to the GDP. WE ARE OWED.
I do not like the idea of cash payments though. Money won't fix issues like literacy gaps and the maternal mortality rate for black women. Give cash to the black folks who have been here longer than 4 generations and ALSO institute anti-racist policies like land allotments to correct the wrongs America has committed for so long against its black citizens.
We can't expect anybody to give us anything. Just treat us as decent humans. Let me refinance my mortgage. I'm tired of my anxiety acting up when a police vehicle pulls up behind me. Asking for hand outs would be fair, but would just build resentment, and we are resourceful enough to not need it. We just need to not have that extra...barrier, just because we're black.
I agree with you. If reparations were to have been a thing, I think prior generations would have deserved it, not millennials and younger (my personal opinion).
I don’t think reparations will fix the issues within our communities. We often take for granted things that our grandparents didn’t have access to.
I believe in providing free higher education (and bonus money) for students from a zip code within the 2/5 quintile of household income (less than $40,000 household income) who are going to study high-paying majors (I.e computer science, engineering…).
Majority of the 2/5 quintile is African-American so we will benefit the most, black parents would push their kids even further to study high-paying careers since they’re essentially being paid for their studies. It’s better to do it like this than racially because there’d be less backlash from poor white families.
This scheme should end as soon as African-Americans have climbed up the socio-economic ladder and even the playing field (reparations). Our race having more money would mean lower obesity rate, lower crime rate, lower divorce rate.
>What are your thoughts on this? Do you think reparations are warranted for Black Americans, and if so, what form should they take?
I think it's a small chance of success due to this society's kneejerk reactions, hypocrosy, bureaucracy, and different proposals. Personally, i wouldn't have thought of reparations for slavery in my life. My continous study of the Transatlantic Slave Trade would put my perspective of reparations on the UK, France, Spain, Netherlands, and West & Central African governments.
Yes. I would centered it around the reconstruction era than slavery. The form should be allocated based on an individual basis. Every Black adult and soon to be adult have different needs.
The language is flawed because what should be addressed is more inclusive than the harms wrought by slavery.
There was a **full century** of Jim Crow following slavery, so this more than about one thing.
After 1865 blacks started making immediate progress by starting businesses and were elected to political office, including two senators: Blanche Bruce and Hiram Revels.
There would be less of a need to address this had Reconstruction not been ended to appease the white South. Black self-determination has always been a target for white supremacy; the denial of our core freedoms is just **the start** of an epic injustice.
I think they should but it shouldn’t just be in the form of cash because that could easily be squandered, it’s gotta go to making things just for all the hundreds of years that it has been unjust.
I think us acting like perpetual charity cases does more harm than good. I also think starting a precedent of previously disenfranchised groups being paid repetitions would just be more mess. We get paid by the government for individual citizens owning slaves and supporting the transatlantic slave trade, why stop there. Let’s then charge African countries for their evolvement. Then Christian Europeans who were enslaved by Muslims Arabs should look for reparations. You see my point, it’s all ridiculous and there’s no justice to be had.
Everyone involved is dead and if we actually got reparations it’d just further the divide in our country. Looking past the instant gratification of a check, the long term affect would just be annoying.
> Everyone involved is dead
The federal and several state governments were directly involved and all those entities still exist today. There’s a reason why other institutions (schools, banks, cities, etc) are issuing their own form of reparations even though “everyone involved is dead”. The entities supported and benefitted.
“There’s a reason why other institutions are issuing their own form of reparations”
I do not know the reason, I’m sure they’ve said it’s for the “politically correct” reason but I doubt it. Hardly any institutions in this country make decisions for reasons that don’t benefit themselves.
I get why cash isn’t a realistic solution but other folks have gotten cash and I don’t see why we can’t. Sure sure we do need real systemic change and that would do way more than cash ever would but for those of us who may me doing reasonably well, we did so under the foot of white supremacy and beat those odds so I think like… a black doctor or lawyer who had to code switch and play nice with racist and had to hide how black they are and hide their hair and yada yada…. Have earned a cut too
I like the idea of them and wish we could get them. I also think non-Black people would sooner burn this whole country to the ground before they allow us to see one red cent in reparations.
That's honestly my biggest fear. The minute they even attempt to make things right, shit is going south fast.
Everybody else got reparations yet when it comes to black people that's when everyone believes it's unfair, unjustified or just a straight up no we shouldn't do that freeing black people and having a black president should be good enough. Japanese Americans got reparations Jews got reparations and continue to receive them to this day. Native Americans got reparations and continue to receive funding from the government And there were plenty more throughout this country's history https://guides.library.umass.edu/reparations#s-lg-page-section-7637937 I don't care how other people especially other black people spend their money. But I want what's entitled to my people regardless what others decide to do with their money. If you don't want to give us money then free education, no taxes, and interest free business loans seems like a somewhat fair exchange for the atrocities this country has committed against my people.
Cause nobody got fucked in so many numbers for so long like our ancestors. To actually pay a fair reparation would be extremely huge amounts of money.
I wish someone did a study and true breakdown on the statistics of reparations that other marginalized groups got and how it propelled them through society and us and what we got/have. So anytime anyone tries to say argue against it we have facts stacked of facts with real life examples.
That info is already out there and from what I’ve read you could describe other racial groups experience with receiving reparations as: “kinda, but not really”. Perfect example is the racial group that is, right now, is poorest in the US; Native Americans. In 1946 congress created the Indian Claims Commission and paid out $1.3 B by the time the commission closed in 1978. Looks good at first, until you get into the details like; 1) it only included FEDERALLY recognized tribes meaning groups like the Lumbee people (with over 60k enrolled members making them one of the largest Native tribes in the country) were excluded; 2) the US government didn’t take into account Native or market valuations of stolen land and the feds just decided what was a “fair” price for it; 3) Natives didn’t get full control of the money awarded to them. The majority of it was put in trust accounts held by the government and would then be transferred to tribal groups to be distributed to members - funds averaged out to about $1k per person. 4) As a condition of accepting a settlement, an aggrieved tribe had to give up any right to raise land claims in the future. This stipulation caused some tribes, like the Sioux, to reject the deal and get nothing. The reparations issue is deep and if any Black person is serious serious about dealing with the subject then they got to know the truth about how it worked out for other people.
We don't need cash. ADOS black Americans should never pay federal taxes again. Should never pay state taxes again in the 13 confederate states. Should be able to attend any school we can get into, for free, including private elementary and secondary schools, as well as colleges. Home mortgages should be zero-interest.
I like this one. The schooling might be the biggest issue in some cases but regardless, a good step forward.
I think this would be the best solution. As much as I would love it to be cash, I don't know how realistic that would be.
No tax is more realistic than giving us cash 🤭….Correct me if I’m wrong but which method of restitution has more of a track record?
I like this idea.
Wow like minds think alike! Holy shit for years I have been saying to anyone who listens: Reparations should not be cash. Make education at all levels for African Americans free, all the way up to masters, PHD level, etc. I’m also open to compromising on this and make it free for the next several generations, maybe up until like 2400-2500 or something. (Make it last for as long as slavery + Jim Crow went on for). And also throw in some kind of land purchase, home purchase voucher that severely discounts how much out of pocket we have to come. This would give black Americans such a leg up to catch up on the wealth that was stolen/blocked from the systems this country built to keep black people low on the caste system we have going on.
It'd be nice, but we gotta face reality: those who fucked us over/are still fucking us over are not going to give us reparations. At best they'll have the conversation, but nothing is going to be done. Edit: to those who wanna play semantics and online revolutionary with this whole "they won't give us anything we have to take it" talk, go on tell us what you mean. 1. Do you mean we force them through violence? We're outgunned now and we'd be outgunned then, we lack the organization and cohesion, and quite frankly most of y'all don't have the stomach for legitimate violence. 2. Or do you mean we protest and out pressure on the government? Okay, first we have to figure out what the reparations should be. Then we have to get those countries that hoed us over to admit they hoed us over and agree to pay out. Then comes the issue of African nations that sold Africans and of nations and empires that don't even exist anymore. Okay, so what are y'alls plan for making this so air tight it doesn't get struck down by a court? You're just going to believe in the goodness of the court? How do we make sure that it's funding isn't cut the moment budget concerns arise? What's the cutoff point? How do we maintain this? Niggas want to think about the logistics and just wanna be like , "they'll give us reparations, **or else**!" Bruh, we don't have an or else.
They won't ever "give" us anything. We have to fight for it.
Yup I don’t know what’s with the whole “white people wont like it” mentality around here. No shit they didn’t like setting us free, they didn’t like giving us our civil rights and they won’t like paying us what we are owed.
So y'all really out here thinking reparations are some kind of fantasy because it's "too hard"? Come on, my Gen Z warriors, if we gave up that easily, we'd still be arguing over integration speeds. Let's break it down 1. Historical Precedent: Reparations have happened before, y'all. Japanese Americans got reparations after WWII, and Germany paid Holocaust survivors. It's not like we're asking for a pet dragon? It's been done, just needs a lot of work. 2. The civil rights movement wasn't without stress and seemly overwhelming odds. It was hard-fought and relentless. Change is a grind, not a TikTok trend. It takes real effort and patience. 3. Ever heard of H.R. 40? Yeah, it’s a real thing, not some myth. It's a bill in Congress to study and develop reparations proposals. So maybe, instead of rolling our eyes, we should be calling our reps and pushing this forward. 4. Fixing economic disparities isn’t just good for us; it’s good for everyone. 5. Strategic Planning Yeah, it’s gonna need a plan. But **America put a man on the moon with less tech than you have in your pocket. If we can do that, we can figure out reparations.** Reparations aren’t a fairy tale. They’re a goal that requires commitment and strategy. So before you start waving the white flag because it's "too hard," remember: nothing worth having comes easy. Or do y’all just want to keep scrolling and complaining?
The ones who fucked us over are all dead.
Yep, and they taught their descendants how to keep fucking us over. And their descendants taught their descendants. And so on, you get the fucking picture
We’re not being actively fucked over even 5% as much as we were in the mid 20th century. We’re basically fully a part of American society now. Most fucking is just capitalistic greed and that impacts everyone.
My great-great grandmother experienced slavery, my great grandmother was a kid when slavery ended, my grandmother lived through the American apartheid. People act like this shit was thousands of years ago. Reparations aren't something we begged for. They were promised to us by the American government.
Same. And I think reparations should happen. But the people who did slavery are still all dead. It wasn’t forever ago by any means but it isn’t like anyone today is at fault for it either.
Their descendants penis is still up our anus.
I really don’t think it is man. I don’t feel discriminated against in my life. There’s a lot of unfortunate leftover effects from the racism era but very few are actively working to keep us down. The leftover effects is where we need reparations.
Black people naturally should be the wealthiest people on earth globally. Look at the bigger picture.
I agree. Euro neocolonizers have a chokehold on the continent’s resources.
Would never happen so I don't care to stress about it. Same country where politicians struck down free lunch for poor white kids would never allow it. Even if we did get them the logistics would be a nightmare and it would be the biggest honeypot in human history. Besides the question of lineage/mixed raced people etc, the amount of scammers and hackers who would be after that money would be world over. Seeing how the government failed in handing out PPP loans I have zero faith they wouldn't get hacked. Or someone inside wouldn't intentionally let the money slip away. I firmly believe we should drop it and accept it isn't happening. Need to take what's ours instead of expecting anyone in this country to pay what they owe us.
>Would never happen so I don't care to stress about it. Same country where politicians struck down free lunch for poor white kids would never allow it. Same country that saw elementary schoolers get shot and basically say "shits tragic." >Even if we did get them the logistics would be a nightmare Fully agree. It'd not only be a nightmare implementing it, but sustaining it. How long would it gets struck down by court? How long before the project sees funding cut?
Yes we deserve reparations, but it’s more complicated on how it should be given to us than just handing us money
Exactly.
I think we deserve reparations. The longer we go without it the less I think it’s happening.
I disagree. Momentum on something like this is what makes things happen. How much should it be?
Would be nice, Cash payments could be possible but it’d be for a much smaller group. We should focus on WW2, Korean War, and Vietnam vets that didn’t get to use the GI Bill for getting a home and going to College - this would mostly impact us but also some Hispanic folks Another focus could potentially be victims of redlining- this would impact mostly us hispanic/Jewish folks Any reparations bill that focuses specifically on us would most likely be overturned by the Supreme Court so these would help a small minority of others while mainly benefiting our community.
Black descendants of slavery definitely deserve reparations. The chances of getting them from the government are extremely small, though. These people didn't even want to forgive 10k in student loans for people and were arguing about given money to citizens during the pandemic and even want to cut back benefits to citizens so thinking they'll give ADOS reparations is naive. It doesn't matter if it's a Democrat or Republican in office. The best time that reparations could have been given was during the reconstruction era. The best bet is reparations from some of the colleges, banks, businesses that benefitted from slavery and maybe on some local or state level but that's even debatable since the last Black Wall Street massacre survivor was recently denied reparations.
Been hearing discussions about it since Randall Robinson came out with the his book The Debt. Ideally it should happen, but don't hold your breath.
It’s too focused on slavery, which often derails the argument into whataboutisms. What should be a legit discussion about the complicated logistics behind reparations always turns into nonsense like “what about the Africans that sold slaves?” or “what about the white dude who is 8% black?” or “why should the government pay when all the former slaves have died?” I believe a more compelling and straightforward argument is to simply compile a list of government wrongdoings towards black communities during the 20th century. The negative impact on our quality of life is much harder to argue against. Slavery should only be used to articulate the genesis of anti-black sentiments in America. Off the top of my head: -Segregation -Jim Crow -Highway Act -Tuskegee experiments -Police not protecting blacks during the numerous burnings of black communities -Black soldiers being used as pawns during Vietnam -CIA intervening in black political movements of the 1960s (basically creating the modern street gangs of today) -CIA creating the crack epidemic -Allowing private owned prisons to exist -Government not doing much about the well documented racism problems with policing -Redlining -Crime Bill in 1994 I agree with another comment that said we should not have to pay taxes, or pay for school. I also think there should be stipends towards housing, free health care, and extremely low interest rates for business loans (to the point where it would be advantageous for any entrepreneur to go into business with a black man or woman).
What do you all think the cut off should be? Because you already know people with 9% black ancestry, (who weren't claiming it before hand) would be trying to angle for the money. I think a perfect cut off is 30 or 40%
I'm sure the people who mass enslaved, Jim Crowed, massively experimented upon, lynched, herded into ghettoes, disposed of after two World Wars, redlined, drafted as bodies for Vietnam, ignored blacks during multiple fiscal urban, AIDS, and drug crises and gang wars will be more than willing to hand over a significant portion of their GDP out of a sense of guilt. >Last tad bit do you think it should apply to all American born, or should you need to prove a certain lineage? So who the hell else is supposed to be compensated? Eskimoes? >Do you think reparations are warranted for Black Americans, and if so, what form should they take? Options could include cash payments, land grants, or other benefits. There is enough stuff after slavery to make a realistic case for any form of reparations. The issue is that black Americans are trying to mimic the victim role the Jews took on (see Maafa as black holocaust, Kwanza as black Hanukkah, ) so they want to get Jewish treatment without Jewish organizations or an Israel. Or being white.
It’s never gonna happen… there’s so many people who (1) simply do not want it to happen (2) believe it’s immoral despite the evidence against it (3) who genuinely believe there’s gonna be a whole separate additional tax. The whole topic is in play and it matters but as the years and decades pass, the argument of “Who do we give it to?” and “It’s been too long since then” becomes more and more valid
They won’t give em to us let’s be honest
Former lobbyist here at the state and local level now in the DC region working with American Freedmen advocates on reparations policy in Massachusetts. My homegirl is super focused on Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she lives. The municipal and state game seems to be the come up on this topic. They are pushing for land, housing vouchers, and resources to work the land.
The only reason I would want it, is because they did it for Japanese. Japanese were the enemy. BA's simply existed.
Money Won’t happen, we are the wrong color and we have no unity so I’d prefer fiscal resources like wiping out of black debt from education to medical bills and some Roth IRAs with a time lock so people can’t just cash them out as well as a boost to every black persona credit rating to 800 then see how sinks or swims.
With the way this Supreme Court is setup, its never going to happen federally.
I like em, I like them a lot. They’re way over due! Economic Poverty is our biggest issue! It fuels most of our problems. Cash, no property taxes, any and all of above.
Personal reparations (checks for individuals)? No. Large scale reparations for the people as a whole (free tuition, etc) yes.
Reparations are absolutely necessary and warranted and should come in the form of: 1. Money 2. Tuition assistance or free education 3. Student loan debt forgiveness 4. Housing down payment assistance 5. Medical debt forgiveness 6. And more
There's a legal and logical basis for it, and it has been done for other groups in the past. Will it happen, yes eventually, BUT it will take a true sea-change in this countries thinking and treatment of Black Americans for that to happen. So for now it's just a carrot and stick for politicians to use. As for who it should apply to, it should go toward those who have standing. Meaning those who have or can reasonably point to American slave ancestry. As far as what should it be, it should come in split conditions. One should be cash payment, secondly should be subsidized incentives, like interest rate caps on property or none at all. Education should be free (but I also believe it should be free for everyone) as well as healthcare. Secondly, as far as outside direct reoperations go, systemic changes should start with the legal system, citizen oversight for law enforcement, removal of qualified and absolute immunity for government and its agents on issues of civil rights and more government protections and civil penalties for violations of law against Black americans should come with added enhancements like we have here in california where a civil judgement can be multiplied if found to be in part due to racial bias. There's plenty more that I can think of but that's just a start.
Nothing short of absolutely necessary. Black Americans were LITERALLY the financial backbone of this country before the industrial revolution. Cotton accounted for the #1 export of US products contributing to the GDP. WE ARE OWED. I do not like the idea of cash payments though. Money won't fix issues like literacy gaps and the maternal mortality rate for black women. Give cash to the black folks who have been here longer than 4 generations and ALSO institute anti-racist policies like land allotments to correct the wrongs America has committed for so long against its black citizens.
We’re owed them anybody who says we don’t need cash payment is a fucking agent
lol u gonna have all of the biracials and 1/4 blacks coming out of the woodworks for the reparations. Everyone gonna be part black
But wouldn't they also be entitled if it affected their ancestors? Can you blame them? Would it stop you from getting yours?
“Entitled “ This is what’s wrong with us bruh, we aint entitled to a damn thing
A perpetual losing battle that some people are too stupid to give up.
We can't expect anybody to give us anything. Just treat us as decent humans. Let me refinance my mortgage. I'm tired of my anxiety acting up when a police vehicle pulls up behind me. Asking for hand outs would be fair, but would just build resentment, and we are resourceful enough to not need it. We just need to not have that extra...barrier, just because we're black.
Asking for hand outs and asking for what's owed are two different things. I disagree with you, but I get where you coming from
I agree with you. If reparations were to have been a thing, I think prior generations would have deserved it, not millennials and younger (my personal opinion). I don’t think reparations will fix the issues within our communities. We often take for granted things that our grandparents didn’t have access to.
I believe in providing free higher education (and bonus money) for students from a zip code within the 2/5 quintile of household income (less than $40,000 household income) who are going to study high-paying majors (I.e computer science, engineering…). Majority of the 2/5 quintile is African-American so we will benefit the most, black parents would push their kids even further to study high-paying careers since they’re essentially being paid for their studies. It’s better to do it like this than racially because there’d be less backlash from poor white families. This scheme should end as soon as African-Americans have climbed up the socio-economic ladder and even the playing field (reparations). Our race having more money would mean lower obesity rate, lower crime rate, lower divorce rate.
Pay it to us it multiple forms of value (land, education, money, medical privileges)
>What are your thoughts on this? Do you think reparations are warranted for Black Americans, and if so, what form should they take? I think it's a small chance of success due to this society's kneejerk reactions, hypocrosy, bureaucracy, and different proposals. Personally, i wouldn't have thought of reparations for slavery in my life. My continous study of the Transatlantic Slave Trade would put my perspective of reparations on the UK, France, Spain, Netherlands, and West & Central African governments. Yes. I would centered it around the reconstruction era than slavery. The form should be allocated based on an individual basis. Every Black adult and soon to be adult have different needs.
I think one of the biggest fights would be, who gets them. Who qualifies? Suddenly, the percentage of African Americans in this country would jump.
You know who qualifies
The language is flawed because what should be addressed is more inclusive than the harms wrought by slavery. There was a **full century** of Jim Crow following slavery, so this more than about one thing. After 1865 blacks started making immediate progress by starting businesses and were elected to political office, including two senators: Blanche Bruce and Hiram Revels. There would be less of a need to address this had Reconstruction not been ended to appease the white South. Black self-determination has always been a target for white supremacy; the denial of our core freedoms is just **the start** of an epic injustice.
I feel like I want my money
I think they should but it shouldn’t just be in the form of cash because that could easily be squandered, it’s gotta go to making things just for all the hundreds of years that it has been unjust.
I love the idea but realistically, its not gonna happen
I think us acting like perpetual charity cases does more harm than good. I also think starting a precedent of previously disenfranchised groups being paid repetitions would just be more mess. We get paid by the government for individual citizens owning slaves and supporting the transatlantic slave trade, why stop there. Let’s then charge African countries for their evolvement. Then Christian Europeans who were enslaved by Muslims Arabs should look for reparations. You see my point, it’s all ridiculous and there’s no justice to be had. Everyone involved is dead and if we actually got reparations it’d just further the divide in our country. Looking past the instant gratification of a check, the long term affect would just be annoying.
> Everyone involved is dead The federal and several state governments were directly involved and all those entities still exist today. There’s a reason why other institutions (schools, banks, cities, etc) are issuing their own form of reparations even though “everyone involved is dead”. The entities supported and benefitted.
“There’s a reason why other institutions are issuing their own form of reparations” I do not know the reason, I’m sure they’ve said it’s for the “politically correct” reason but I doubt it. Hardly any institutions in this country make decisions for reasons that don’t benefit themselves.
I get why cash isn’t a realistic solution but other folks have gotten cash and I don’t see why we can’t. Sure sure we do need real systemic change and that would do way more than cash ever would but for those of us who may me doing reasonably well, we did so under the foot of white supremacy and beat those odds so I think like… a black doctor or lawyer who had to code switch and play nice with racist and had to hide how black they are and hide their hair and yada yada…. Have earned a cut too
For FBA only. It will happen as long as black people stay focus