Simple answer… Yes! You’re probably wondering, but why now? It’s been over 150 years since the end of slavery. However, that was not the end of the mistreatment African Americans had to endure after the abolishment of slavery. Continuing through the Civil War, where the North and the South went into war for their opposing ideas on abolishing slavery. With the North being held victorious and following the war came the Reconstruction era in 1865 where African Americans was given legal status, but it did not all of sudden erase the previous 250 years at that time of enslavement that came before the abolishment of slavery.
The article The Case for Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates published by The Atlantic pushes for reparations toward African Americans by discussing the experiences of those who experienced systematic oppressions through the years during and after slavery. As mentioned “Slaves were the single largest, by far, financial asset of property in the entire American economy” – David W. Blight.
Here are some of the ways African Americans have been oppressed through time:
In 1877, when Federal Troops withdrew from the South, Black schools and churches were burned to the ground. Black voters and the political candidates who attempted to rally them were given a scared and some were murdered. At the end of World War I, black veterans returning to their homes were assaulted for daring to wear the American uniform. These were signs that the Reconstruction era died. There was a rise of violence toward African Americans even after the liberation of African Americans. The hatred toward African Americans continued and it continues to linger today.
Africans Americans through the 20th century while finding housing were offered horrible contracts where if they missed any payments for the home would have the down payment taken and evicted immediately. Black people had to accept these contracts due to the exclusion of Black people from having legitimate means of getting a mortgage.
Today African Americans are faced with mass incarceration due to the War on Drugs that was led by the U.S. Government whose goal was to reduce the illegal drug trade, but continues to impact vulnerable and poor Black communities for its enforcement on specific drugs, such as “crack cocaine vs cocaine” with both having the same chemical properties, but crack cocaine being held to a higher degree of imprisonment, which is generally found in low-income communities.
The article raises an interesting point that, “the idea of reparations threatens something much deeper—America’s heritage, history, and standing in the world.” The United States continues to hide behind their past and one of the ways it continues to do that is not confronting its long history of constructing systems to oppress Black people.
So, who should get paid? How much? As mentioned in the article. That should not be the talking point when discussing reparations. The main focus should be studying. It’s to study the issue first and through it then the solution could be assessed. This is why bills, such as, HR 40 which purpose that African Americans have never been paid for what they have endured should be talked about more to reveal the truths about American history.