PLATFORM : The Next Step

An issue that has come up is the possibility of some type of reparations for African-Americans who are descendants of slaves.

There is a bill in the House calling for a fact-finding commission on pre-Civil War slavery. From what I understand, the bill requests a federally commissioned hearing on the current and historical effects of slavery on African-Americans. It is supposed to be modeled after the Japanese-American reparations bill.

There are strong parallels between the internment experience and slavery. Both were grounded in race prejudice, and both existed because of our political leaders’ failure to uphold basic human rights.

There are differences also. During slavery, African-Americans were denied citizenship and not guaranteed any rights. Even though the atrocities they suffered far outweigh what Japanese-Americans were put through, the government has allowed the citizenship difference to blur the issue.