Ta-Nehisi Coates: Why Precisely Is Bernie Sanders Against Reparations?

[underthematrix]

19. Bernie's statement on reparations is the opening

salvo of article:

I thought it was interesting, instructive and illuminating:

No, I don’t think so. First of all, its likelihood of getting through Congress is nil. Second of all, I think it would be very divisive. The real issue is when we look at the poverty rate among the African American community, when we look at the high unemployment rate within the African American community, we have a lot of work to do.

So I think what we should be talking about is making massive investments in rebuilding our cities, in creating millions of decent paying jobs, in making public colleges and universities tuition-free, basically targeting our federal resources to the areas where it is needed the most and where it is needed the most is in impoverished communities, often African American and Latino.

Bernie is willing to make massive investments as long as it doesn't dismantle the underlying infrastructure and the grand narratives of white supremacy, even though this is the one thing we need to do bring about real racial, social and economic justice.