Quick summary: This newsletter highlights the broader fight for reparations across the country, focusing on California’s efforts to advance reparations legislation and a recent survey linking the issue to Black voters in the state, featuring stories from Capital B, Prism and Black Voice News, including an example of redress in cities like Chicago.
WASHINGTON, DC - OCT. 16, 2021: Activists demonstrate at White House demanding President Biden sign an executive order to study reparations, and establish a commission for descendants of American slavery. Credit: Shutterstock
Reparations matter to Black people voting this year
Hey fam,
The topic of reparations for descendants of enslaved Africans, as well as the nation’s longstanding anti-Black policies, has been largely absent in the news cycle during this election season. Over the past few years, we’ve seen stories on this issue from URL Media partners, but this recent piece from Capital B elevates the conversation as the countdown to November 5 continues. It explores the fight for reparations in California, a lone state in the country taking active measures to advance reparations legislation for African Americans.
In June of last year, The Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans released a 1,062-page report examining reparations and California’s involvement in slavery, anti-Black racism, discrimination and the ongoing harms affecting Black Californians. Earlier this month, the state also conducted its largest reparations survey of Black Californians to gauge voters' sentiments on the issue and how it might impact their vote this year. The survey shows that Black Californians — across political affiliations — overwhelmingly support reparations, with eight in ten people saying a political candidate’s stance matching their own would increase their likelihood of supporting that candidate. This newsletter aims to unpack the fight for reparations and looks at examples of redress in other states, including Chicago, as reported by Prism. But first, what is reparations?It’s worth noting that reparations are a system of redress for egregious injustices, as reparations scholar and director of the University of Maryland’s Social Justice Alliance Rayshawn Ray explains in this 2020 report “Why We Need Reparations for Black Americans,” published by the Brookings Institution. Ray, who more recently spoke with Capital B, shared that reparations aren’t a foreign concept and that other groups have received restitution, adding, “It’s just that Black people have been excluded from it.”
Featured Stories
For Scalawag, writer and researcher Laura O’Connor draws parallels between the oppression and plight of Kashmiris and Palestinians, noting that both territories share ecocide and environmental destruction, resistance movements, digital abuse, and the Western media’s role in covering up both as commonalities. "I don't see people as Kashmiri or Palestinian; I see people as exploiter and exploited. This is why they are connected — Kashmir, Palestine, and struggles elsewhere, too," said Aneeq, a UK-based Kashmiri activist. Read the full piece here →
Documented created this guide to help you navigate New York City’s West Indian Day Parade, one of the largest cultural celebrations in North America, drawing millions of people every year. Read more here →
Earlier this month, Oklahoma state officials announced a third set of remains found in a Tulsa cemetery by a group of anthropologists searching for the graves of victims massacred during the Tulsa Race Riot in 1921. Read more from Black Voice News →
In an exclusive letter published by Watch The Yard, the Harris-Walz campaign announced a targeted initiative focusing on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). In the letter, Harris calls on students to vote in the election, reminding them, “Your vote has never mattered more.” Read it here →
Black country singers have been around for generations, but it almost felt like it wasn’t until Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” that people wanted to learn more about Black artists in the genre. Parlé Magazine curated a list of Black country singers you should have on your playlist →
The Kansas City Defender spotlights growing frustrations among young Black women with the evolving hair industry, where issues like last-minute cancellations and unclear policies raise concerns about professionalism. Read more here →
"Sowing Seeds: Filipino American Stories from the Pajaro Valley," an exhibit at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History, showcases the history of Filipino labor and migration in the region, blending oral histories, family archives, and contemporary art. AsAmNews has more on the project →
The University of Minnesota Board of Regents declined pro-Palestinian protesters’ demands to divest from Israel in an August 27 vote. The board said it would consider this in rare circumstances where a “board consensus” existed within the campus community. Learn more from Sahan Journal →
URL Original Content: Kamala Harris, daughter of immigrants, was hardly pro-immigrant in her CNN interview
Vice President Kamala Harris said there should be consequences for people who illegally cross the U.S. southern border, making clearer her approach to immigration during her first major interview since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee.
“We have laws that have to be followed and enforced,” Harris told CNN’s Dana Bash on Thursday.
“Let’s be clear, in this race, I’m the only person who has prosecuted transnational criminal organizations who traffic in guns, drugs, and human beings. I’m the only person in this race who actually served a border state as attorney general to enforce our laws. And I would enforce our laws as president going forward,” Harris said.
