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

[tishaLA]

32. Mr Coates never said that his support for a candidate is based

solely on his or her position on reparations nor does he say anything about another candidate's position on reparations. (As I say upthread, I'm virtually certain that all the Presidential candidates, both Democratic and repub, oppose reparations; I'm equally certain that Mr Coates, who is savvy and well-informed, knows this, as well.)

Both of those are straw man arguments.

What Mr Coates actually argues in this article is that Mr Sanders makes a noteworthy rhetorical shift toward the rhetoric of pragmatism when discussing reparations that is noticeably absent from his discussions concerning infrastructure, health care, and free college. And he wants to understand that rhetorical shift. The effect of this pragmatic turn, Mr Coates argues, is to leave white supremacy intact.

If you are interested in the whys and wherefores of Mr Coates' position on reparations, he has written an excellent, widely-praised (and long) article on the subject, "The Case for Reparations."