Wednesday, August 12, 2020

Reparations now

Support for a program to pay reparations to descendants of slaves is gaining momentum, but could come with a $12 trillion price tag

PUBLISHED WED, AUG 12 20201:13 PM EDT
Tala Hadavi

Here’s how the government could fund reparations for descendants of slaves,...

KEY POINTS

A movement supporting reparations as a way to make amends for the atrocities of slavery and to reduce the persistent wealth gap is gaining momentum.
One hundred and forty-two members of Congress support H.R. 40, the bill to study reparations.
William Darity, professor of public policy at Duke University, estimates a concrete program could cost the U.S. government between $10 trillion and $12 trillion.

Reparations for slavery has been fiercely discussed in the United States since Union Army Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman promised 40 acres and a mule to 4 million freed slaves in 1865. While Americans don’t generally support a reparations program paid by taxpayers, this summer’s events have shifted the once overlooked topic into the national debate.

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