The effects of slavery are still felt by Black Americans today, as they are confronted with systemic racism, brutality, discrimination, and inequalities in housing, health, education, the environment, police, and law enforcement. The deaths of Black individuals like Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor, as well as the widespread rallies against racial inequity, show how America has failed to address this lengthy history of mistreatment. The psychological and emotional injuries resulting from slavery and anti-Black racism are still present and need for an all-encompassing solution.
Although there has been discussion about reparations since the conclusion of the Civil War, many credit Raymond Jenkins, a Detroit real estate broker nicknamed “Reparations Ray,” for spearheading the most recent nationwide campaign.
Jenkins persuaded Representative John Conyers (D-Mich.) that the US Congress was the appropriate forum to discuss the necessity for a study on slavery reparations.
Voters made it plain in the November 2020 elections that they wanted racial justice to be given top priority by their chosen officials. President Biden may demonstrate that he has by forming a commission based on the H.R. 40 bill.
Over 30 years have passed since HR-40 was introduced in Congress. Its purpose is to provide funding for research into “slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies.” The measure has never been put to a full vote. Nevertheless, under Biden’s rule and with a record 215 members of Congress pledging to vote “yes,” H.R. 40 was brought to the House floor for a vote in April 2021 after the House Judiciary Committee voted in favor of it for the first time. More so than at any other point in its existence.
This measure creates the Commission to Research and Formulate Plans for African American Reparation. Examining slavery and prejudice in the colonies and the US from 1619 to the present and devising appropriate solutions. The commission will determine how the federal and state governments contributed to the institution of slavery, how freed slaves and their descendants are discriminated against in the public and private spheres, and how slavery continues to have a negative impact on African Americans today and society as a whole.
In an April statement, White House spokesman Rodericka Applewhaite told ABC News that “President Biden is actively delivering for Black Americans by executing his Day One commitment to advance racial equity and support for underserved communities.” “The president’s policy has resulted in record-low Black unemployment since entering office, a 60% rise in Black net wealth since the epidemic, the highest pace of Black-owned small company creation in over 25 years, and increased Black homeownership and housing protections.”
The bill does not provide payments or other legal recourse. A commission to research the issue and suggest remedies is established; considering the range of approaches available to address particular damages, this is an essential first step. The law has the potential to provide a thorough and accurate assessment and reconciliation of past and current damages, similar to the federal commission that looked into the illegal internment and forced relocation of Japanese Americans during World War II.