California To Study Reparations For Black Residents Under New Law Signed By Gov. Newsom
Source: Sacramento Bee
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law on Wednesday that opens the door to the state paying reparations of some kind to Black Californians, especially those who are descendants of slaves. The law does not commit to any specific kind of payment. It calls for a nine-member task force that will be asked to make recommendations for how reparations could be provided, such as through compensation or restitution.
The task force can also make recommendations on eliminating state laws and policies that perpetuate discrimination and on issuing a formal apology “for the perpetration of gross human rights violations and crimes against humanity on African slaves and their descendants,” according to the bill.
The task force will be asked to compile a report on the effects of slavery and systemic discrimination — historic and current — on Black Californians and recommend appropriate ways to educate the public of those effects, by no later than June 2022. “Advancing this cause where it’s not just a question on a questionnaire for a candidate running for office but actually taking shape here, that’s a meaningful moment,” Newsom said before he signed the bill. “This conversation is so long overdue.”
California becomes one of the first states to study reparations. The support for reparations has grown across the nation, with Congress in 2019 holding its first hearing on the subject. In July, the city council of Asheville in North Carolina unanimously voted to establish a Community Reparations Commission that will put funds and resources toward benefiting the city’s Black residents. Recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Black Americans have amplified the calls for racial justice and equity...
Read more: https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article246126745.html
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