A New York lawmaker wants the federal government to push a $14 trillion reparations measure.
The measure is touted by “Squad” member Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., who wants the federal government to be held accountable for slavery and the aftermath of it, according to the Journal News.
Bowman cited the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the “space race” endeavor as examples that would make the measure feasible.
“When COVID was destroying us, we invested in the American people in a way that kept the economy afloat,” said Bowman. “The government can invest the same way in reparations without raising taxes on anyone.”
“Where did the money come from?” Bowman said. “We spent it into existence.”
Bowman is among nine sponsors of H.R. 414, which seeks to establish that the US has “a moral and legal obligation to provide reparations for the enslavement of Africans and its lasting harm on the lives of millions of Black people in the United States.”
The measure, introduced in 2023, would prompt the federal government to spend $14 trillion on a reparations program that would support the descendants of enslaved Black people and people of African descent.
Blacks make up 12% of the population in the US, according to Census figures.
Reportedly, the bill comes three decades after another bill that sought to assemble a federal commission to study reparations.
The measure to establish a federal commission on the impact of reparations was reintroduced this year and Bowman is a sponsor of it. --->READ MORE HERE
I walked in to one of my favorite restaurants in Georgetown on Saturday, famished and ready for a salad– that’s not contradictory, it’s very filling, I promise. The manager, nattily dressed as always, approached me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Not the Georgetown air-kiss, mind you. I’m no socialite and he’s no enabler. He’s just very old-school, from his ever-present formal cuff links to his defiantly-retro mustache. The interesting thing was, I was about to find out exactly how retro he truly is.
I’ve been eating at his restaurant for almost a decade and he is kind to his regulars, so he seated me himself and ordered one of his staff to take great care of me. Again, this is not as exclusive as it may sound; I heard him issue the same command twice while I munched mixed greens and goat cheese. That’s just the way he is. He’ll be walking from one end of the restaurant to the bar and he’ll turn, lock eyes with you and wink merrily. Old-school.
When he had a moment, he walked up and asked how I was doing.
“What are you up to these days?”
“I just started an amazing new job up the street, at WAMU.”
He nodded. “I listen to them. Are you on the air?”
This happens to me every time I tell people where I work. Perfectly understandable assumption and reasonable question for a person who works at a radio station.
“No, they hired me to write for a new website called ‘DCentric’. It’s about race and class in the district.”
“Race and class? THAT’s your beat?”
“Yes…” I stammered a bit. He looked incredulous and I immediately wondered if he was going to launch in to a litany of reasons for why that was silly. I continued, awkwardly. “They’re topics which really need to be explored, right now.” I said, earnestly. “Some may think we’re ‘post-racial’, but at the same time, we’re in the midst of a Mayoral race where people love hearing about how white people love Fenty and black people prefer Gray. We’re consumed with race in this city.”
He regarded me skeptically. I took a deep breath to continue to make my case, fully aware of how if this were someone else, I wouldn’t feel compelled to do so. Perhaps because of his age, he reminded me of one of my Dad’s friends, the kind of person I go to greater lengths to explain (or justify) my choices to. When I opened my mouth, he cut me off decisively.
“Not in this city, in this country. This whole country is consumed with race.”
I was slightly shocked. I hadn’t expected that! --->READ MORE HERE
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