Are you in favor of reparations to African Americans?

[MoonRiver]

Put aside the amount of individual reparations. I'm talking about the concept only.

62 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Yes
	27 (44%)
	No
	27 (44%)
	Maybe/Depends
	6 (10%)
	Other
	2 (3%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[secondwind]

1. If we can give billionaires huge tax cuts, we should be able to do something

for our brothers and sisters.

[Zoonart]

2. NO... and not because I don't think it is owed.

Simply because I cannot fathom how it would be administered. It would undoubtedly become a boondoggle that would be used in propaganda and would stymie other forms of more immediate change,
It would drain all of the energy from the crusade for justice in policing, housing and hiring.

I just don't see how it would work. Monetary justice is a systemic problem and won't be solved by a one time payout. It flows directly from racism.

[UncleTomsEvilBrother]

6. Just because you don't see...

...how it could happen, you voted "No"?

The Crusades ended eventually. Perhaps, reparations could end this one as well, no?

[uponit7771]

7. Free college anywhere? Lower interest rate home & business loans,

[Zoonart]

10. Yes on these ideas....

This is how it could happen.

What I feel kills the concept of reparations is a federal bureaucracy.... that's what I meant.

[handmade34]

12. some ideas... and there is much more out there

….Reparations would involve an official apology for centuries of slavery and discrimination, and spending money to reduce their effects.
There’s a wrong way to spend that money: trying to find the descendants of slaves and sending them a check. That would launch a politically ruinous argument over who qualifies for the money, and at the end of the day people might be left with a $1,000 check that would produce no lasting change.
Giving reparations money to neighborhoods is the way to go...………..

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/04/opinion/united-states-reparations.html

[gollygee]

17. The first step would be a study to determine that. nt

[Cartaphelius]

3. Definitely a "no-brainer"

for all that vote "NO". Heaven forbid the application of the events
and the results of slavery's unending abuse over the last 400 years.

[Tom Rinaldo]

4. I would favor DIRECT payments to living grandchildren of slaves though very few would qualify

I model that on how some other nations grant citizenship to Americans who had one or more grandparents born in that foreign nation. At some point the past recedes into the past in terms of the direct "benefits" of traceable lineage. However I do favor major government programs and spending to mitigate the damage done to African American communities as a continuing consequence of slavery.

[raccoon]

21. They'd pretty much have to be old as Dracula to qualify. Nt

[Tom Rinaldo]

40. Not necessarily.

A male former slave born in 1860 could easily have fathered a son born in 1910 (when he was 50) .That child could than have fathered a son or daughter when he turned 50 in 1960. The grandchild of that former slave would thus be 60 years old today. There were some slaves born in 1864, and males can still father offspring well past their 50th birthday, so some grandchildren of former slaves might be 50 years old today

[Polybius]

43. "A male former slave born in 1860 could easily have fathered a son born in 1910"

So he was a slave at the time of his birth?

[Tom Rinaldo]

54. Exactly. Someone born into slavery was a slave, even if only briefly n/t

[sarisataka]

53. President John Tyler

Born in 1790 has two living grandchildren. One of those strange quirks of history.

There could be hundreds of living grandchildren of former slaves.

[still_one]

5. I am for expanding affirmative action programs

[McKim]

8. Fortunes were Made Off Their Backs

Since fortunes were made off their backs, yes!!!!!! They deserve compensation for their unpaid labor and the way they have been treated since slavery “ended”. Many US Corporations got a great start off their labor. It’s payback time for them and for Native Americans. We waste money on armaments while our people go without! This is a great use of my tax dollars! Bring it!!

[Arthur_Frain]

9. I actually had an idea for this years ago.

When I was young and supposed to be liberal. I even thought I could sell it to the conservatives, because of the biblical overtones it had.

I suggested that we give all African Americans a 7 year tax jubilee. For those who haven’t read the OT in some time, those old time Jews were big on 7 year jubilees. Taxes and debts were forgiven, slaves were freed, wives weren’t beaten for (most of) a year.

Thing is I did this kind of tongue in cheek. At this point, any “reparations” IMHO, are going to end up being symbolic. For the very reason you “compartmented” your poll, disallowing individual reparations. Because that’s the rub right there isn’t it?

I don’t think we are ever going to get around to this because there is no way to come up with a solution that is going to please enough people to have any meaningful success by being enacted. Even in my tongue in cheek suggestion, how do you determine eligibility? How many generations back do you have to trace American ancestry?

Reparations are long overdue. Considering our sorry track record in point of fact, I won’t be holding my breath that anything at all gets done. Ever.

[tavernier]

11. Yes but not entirely monetary.

I believe free higher education should definitely be at the top of the list, for starters.

[ProfessorGAC]

35. Tax Free Long Term Business Loans

Including guaranteed line of credit for 10 years, with full BKO sheltering in the event of failure.
And, 2 bites at the apple.
No banks. No collateral. Just low interest $ to help build an AA economic base.
This is in addition to your idea, not instead of.

[tavernier]

37. Sounds good.

Education is always the first thing on my list because I think it is the most important key to the success of any community.

[obamanut2012]

13. Yes, and also to women

[gollygee]

18. African Americans have had generational wealth stolen and kept from them

White women haven't had the generational harm because we come from white families who have been able to accumulate wealth.

[Blue_true]

14. Like Senator Sanders, I would like details about how reparations would be

done. Do we hand each African American that has at least one parent that descended from slaves x dollars? What does an AA whose both parents descended from slaves get? Instead of giving each AA that fall into one of the group's above money, should the money instead be put in an "investment" fund so that money gets invested in AA communities? If the money goes into a fund, how will leaders of that fund be chosen and what metrics will be used to guage whether they are using the money for it's intended purposes?

There are just so many questions around reparations. I would rather we focus on stomping out systemic racism and police brutality, people guilty of either should pay with their freedom and/or job security.

If one looks at metrics, AA wealth is something like 66-78% of that of Whites, eventhough the weight of systemic and hot racism has been a constant for AA. My argument is that when the racism is removed, African Americans as a group have the intelligence, creativity, and determination to eliminate the wealth and other gaps, without reparations. Really vile conduct toward AA over 150+ years could not break the group, I doubt that future uncertainties sans racism will be able to.

[42bambi]

25. Getting rid of all systemic racism, inequality, etc,. may be the biggest gift of all. I sense

that we are finally moving forward to a more perfect life for EVERY person.

[Blue_true]

27. I am heartened by the recent trend of making racists pay economically.

That need to be extended to racist cops and it has been in some case, though not enough.

We need to drive for a country where bosses don't tolerate racism on the job, least they lose their jobs. A country where housing discrimation brings high and painful penalties, including jail. When racist realize that they won't find safe haven anywhere, they may hold it in their hearts, but they won't carry out the external actions that have sustained racism in America.

[kentuck]

56. Here are some interesting graphs from 1860:

https://www.bowdoin.edu/~prael/lesson/tables.htm

[Blue_true]

57. One reason why southern Whites didn't want free slaves is

The population of slaves overwhelmed the White population.

[yellerpup]

15. It is and has been our obligation to live up to the promise

of 40 acres and a mule (or whatever that amounts to, plus interest and penalties since Abraham Lincoln was assassinated). I keep hearing "all our citizens, black and white" but we are of many shades in the USA, and many of those other colors deserve redress. Especially Native Americans because they were the object of genocide. Racial prejudice and exploitation of the other is still going on. It never stopped as any immigrant from any time can tell you.

[LuvLoogie]

16. So many in this country won't even acknowledge the humanity of African Americans.

The open, racist commentary and contempt expressed by trumplandia is seething and vicious. That must be defeated, utterly--driven back into their putrid souls. I think the only way to do that is to keep supporting men and women of color and white Americans who promote a fair, just society. Drown out the toxicity.

We have to beat back this recurring bigotry in our society, because it is always leveraged to do harm to those seeking justice and progress.

We couldn't even get the GOP to pass gun control legislation after white children were slaughtered. We barely got the ARRA and the ACA passed.

The reparations have to be systemic, across all of our industries and institutions, and that takes motivation, heart, a sense of justice. We have to prepare our minds and souls to work this justice.

[greenjar_01]

19. Reparations would be not just for slavery, but for policies that lasted well into the 1990s

and in some cases even continue to this day.

White Americans built generational wealth throughout the twentieth century based on discriminatory policies of all kinds, including, most notably housing. If you or your parents bought a house before 1990, you benefitted from a red-lined market, and most African Americans were hurt by that. Not 130 years ago. Thirty-five years ago. Real money - and some of it probably sitting in your bank accounts or investment accounts RIGHT now. Did you benefit financially from a house that was bought in the 1950s and sold in the 1990s? You're a beneficiary of racially discriminatory red-lining and the funneling of generational wealth along racial lines.

Excessive and aggressive policing of minority neighborhoods together with obvious and well-documented sentencing disparity has benefited white children in school/college and job competition - to this day. Not 135 years ago. This year's college class. This year's job seekers. This year's small business loan seekers. Complete expungement of most criminal records for those under 25 would be a minimum reparation.

[MoonRiver]

20. Ending the property tax basis for funding schools would go a long way toward equalizing things. nt

[Chainfire]

22. It is a complicated subject that comes with no simple answers

I feel that everyone in this country deserves fair and equitable treatment which would go a lot further to correcting past sins than a monetary payout. I do not feel that we can buy our way out of our shameful history. A good start to rectifying our sins of the past would be to provide equal public education and free higher education and a living wage for all Americans; that would go further to leveling the playing field than selecting winners and losers based upon history and race.

If we decide that we need to write a check to pay for our sins, would we not be obligated, for the same reasons to compensate people of Native American origins? Perhaps, even people of Irish American, or Italian heritage would deserve some compensation for being treated as untermensch when they immigrated to America. How do you possibly design and implement a "fair" system?

For a better outcome, we need to work on changing the current and future social and economic sins. The best way forward is to begin by addressing the massive disparity of the distribution of wealth in the country. People are mistreated as much because of their economic status as they are for their race or national origins. We can't change the past, but we can influence the future.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

23. Yes, in the form of grants to underprivileged areas.

[Afromania]

24. How about leave us alone and stop killing us.

Just leaving us alone, which amounts to letting us play on a level playing field, would more than be enough. It's absolutely the cheapest thing that could be done and would yield all sorts of benefits for all involved. Wouldn't it be nice if all of the time they dedicate to hating me were put to use making their corners of the world better places? Imagine if they didn't vote to gut all sorts of social services because a brown person might use it? Or where they championed education for all rather than trying to destroy it because brown people go to school. A world where they didn't vote for people who use their bigotry as a wedge to let those same politicians steal from them, take their jobs, leave their kids uneducated and superstitious and destroy their environments with whatever foul things the people they are beholden to want. I could do a better job of explaining this and go on and on with this point and that but they know all of this already and refuse to even try.


So, again, just leave us alone. It's all the reparations we need.

[Happy Hoosier]

26. In general, no...

But I could be convinced by a good plan. Otherwise, I’d prefer to invest in the health and education infrastructure of the country and ensure we target efforts toward African Americans in need.

[Ponietz]

28. Atonement must occur or we'll never heal

[brooklynite]

29. Another symbolism issue that's impossible to implement and an election loser.

[customerserviceguy]

39. I wonder what will happen

if the platform committee at the DNC takes up the issue this year.

[brooklynite]

46. The Platform will be decided by Joe Biden with input from Bernie Sanders

It won't call for "defunding the police" or "reparations".

[customerserviceguy]

59. Agreed

But don't you think that a push will be made to include both of those concepts in one way or another? And will the losing side be able to get along with the winning side after that?

[brooklynite]

60. Reparations - definitely not...

That's still a fringe policy with limited support.

[Ponietz]

55. Symbols drive humanity

They exist in the human collective unconscious. Nations are founded upon, and destroyed by, symbols.

[Ohio Joe]

30. Yes - nt

[In It to Win It]

31. Yes but what would reparations look like?

That’s what stopped me dead in my tracks.

[mvd]

32. Yes

As people said, it can take many forms. If we get a progressive UBI, some could be added to that. Or grants can be given to communities and minority owned businesses and minority run colleges. It would take a lot of discussion.

[Drahthaardogs]

33. Depends on how it's done, but generally yes.

I am for free college, low interest loans, other development incentives, child care help, medical help etc.

Just cash payouts - nah

[mahina]

34. Structurally, communitywide, to build wealth and capacity in black

Communities, absolutely.

The injustice happened granularly to the individuals but those individuals are gone. what we’re left with is injustice to entire communities. We know how to stop the prison industrial complex cycle. We know how to lift whole communities.

Slavery was suffered by individuals but it’s fallout left broader devastation.

[Tipperary]

36. Why do we never hear about reparations for native Americans? nt

[BumRushDaShow]

61. Because many tribes had treaties and for others, they rarely called attention to it

because of how it was ultimately implemented in usual paternalistic fashion.

America Has Tried Reparations Before. Here Is How It Went.

With a renewed focus on reparations for slavery, what lessons can be drawn from payments to victims of other historical injustices in America?

By Adeel Hassan and Jack Healy

June 19, 2019

/snip

Native Americans did not get full control of money awarded to them.

After World War II, Congress created the Indian Claims Commission to pay compensation to any federally recognized tribe for land that had been seized by the United States. The group’s mission was complicated by a paucity of written records, difficulties in putting a value on the land for its agricultural productivity or religious significance, and problems with determining boundaries and ownership from decades, or more than a century, earlier.

The results were disappointing for Native Americans. The commission paid out about $1.3 billion, the equivalent of less than $1,000 for each Native American in the United States at the time the commission dissolved in 1978. “On one level, it was remarkable,” said Melody McCoy, a lawyer for the Native American Rights Fund, a nonprofit group that has represented tribes in hundreds of major cases. “Congress listened to the claims of tribal leaders.”

But, Ms. McCoy said, the government took a paternalistic view, and kept Native Americans from having direct control of the funds, in the belief they were not “competent to receive such large amounts of money.” “They did not make those awards, whether it was $200 million, $20 million or $20,000 — they held that money in trust accounts,” she said.

A separate agreement, struck with Congress in 1971, led to the biggest award — $962 million worth of land in Alaska, some 44 million acres — in return for Indians, Eskimos and Aleuts relinquishing their aboriginal claims to the rest of the state. Once again, the compensation was not awarded directly; instead, the land was put in the control of corporations, and the beneficiaries were given shares of stock in them.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/19/us/reparations-slavery.html

[FirstLight]

38. I don't know....but

What about Native American people???

They have also been consistently screwed...

I guess it sets up a slippery slope, cuz there's plenty of race and people who the US has fucked over time.

[BannonsLiver]

41. What if white Americans paid reparations from their own personal funds?

Last edited Sat Jun 27, 2020, 02:30 PM - Edit history (1)

That way there will be a sense of actual sacrifice and atonement.

[Polybius]

42. We would have mass defects to the Republican party

I'm black and my white relatives paying me out of their taxes in would be insanity.

[BannonsLiver]

44. Not out of their taxes

Out of their own bank accounts. I think if people really want to do this there should be some actual sacrifice. Having the govt. write checks is not sacrifice. It’s the easy way out.

[Polybius]

45. That's even worse

Race relations would go back to the 50's. I'd feel every white person would hate me.

[gollygee]

51. That's his point

It would create a huge backlash against African Americans so it could never happen, and he knows it. It's his way of saying he's opposed to reparations.

[gollygee]

47. The point of reparations

is that the United States as a whole created a great deal of wealth from enslaved people's work, and that US governmental laws kept Black families from building up generational wealth. It's a collective responsibility, not one for individuals.

[BannonsLiver]

48. So you're not willing to make any actual real sacrifices then.

Got it.

[gollygee]

50. You're deflecting because you're opposed to them. nt

[sarisataka]

49. How much should each white person pay?

Will it be a flat rate or depend on how long their family has lived in the US? Will southern residents pay more? What about whites who immigrated in the 20th century, will they be excused or pay a lesser amount?

[BannonsLiver]

52. Great questions

And you've also laid out some pretty good ones on which black families should be paid reparations as well.

How long have they been here? Which family’s descendants came here as slaves? For how long we’re they kept as slaves?

Unfortunately that will be pretty hard if not impossible to track.

[Calculating]

58. No, because there's no fair way of doing it

What about African Americans who came here after slavery ended? What about African Americans who are part white? Do they get less? What about white people who came over from Europe after slavery ended? Should they have to pay? What about the Native Americans who arguably got screwed over just as bad, if not worse?

I'd agree with the following:
1-Stop unfair law enforcement practices targeting POC.
2-Possible housing or education assistance for African Americans and Native Americans.

[planetc]

62. Yes, even though there's no way of doing it that would satisfy everybody.

First, we could put the question of how to distribute reparation funds into the hands of African Americans. They could decide how to do it. They're perfectly capable of deciding that. There would have to be a tax, on everybody, no matter where or when they were born, and graduated so as not to soak poor people. And there should be another fund set up to accept voluntary donations from any American who wanted to contribute. Since I'm retired, and no longer pay income tax, they wouldn't ask me for a tax contribution. That's why I would like a place to make a voluntary contribution.

My contribution would be one small way to celebrate the African American writers, entertainers, musicians, sports figures, statesmen and women, scientists, nurses, teachers, and all other workers who have been and are still contributing to American life and culture. America owes more to African Americans than we could ever adequately reward. They invented jazz, and rock 'n roll, and win Nobel prizes and Pulitzer prizes. All the contributions they have made so far were accomplished in the face of pervasive discrimination and persistent brutality.

African Americans are just as smart as the rest of us are, and probably nicer.

[treestar]

63. Probably unconstitutional

Anything decided by race would never pass strict scrutiny.

[geralmar]

64. The Civil War was reparations.

596,670 Union dead, wounded or missing.

[whistler162]

65. We would need to consider who qualifies

Would my cousin's niece and nephew qualify even though their father was from Bermuda? Mother is of Norwegian descent.