New York City lawmakers approved a bill last Thursday (12) to study the city's significant role in slavery and consider the possibility of compensating the descendants of enslaved people.

A publication by VOA, quoted in AFP says that if it becomes law, the package of bills passed will follow in the footsteps of several others in the United States that have sought ways to address the country's black history, as well as a separate New York State commission that began work this year.

New York abolished slavery completely in 1827. But companies, including the predecessors of some modern banks, continued to benefit financially from the slave trade - probably until 1866. The legislators behind the proposals noted that the damage caused by the institution is still felt by black Americans today.

"The redress movement is often misinterpreted as a mere call for compensation," said Rep. Farah Louis, a Democrat who sponsored one of the bills. She explained that systemic forms of oppression continue to impact people through redlining, environmental racism and underfunded services in predominantly black neighborhoods.

The bills have yet to be signed into law by the Democratic Speaker of the House, Eric Adams. The City Council expressed its support in a statement, describing the legislation as "another crucial step toward addressing systemic inequities, promoting reconciliation, and creating a more just and equitable future for all New Yorkers."

The bills provide for the city's Commission on Racial Equity to suggest solutions to the legacy of slavery, including reparations. They would also create a truth and reconciliation process to establish historical facts about slavery in the state.

One of the proposals also calls for the city to install an information sign on Wall Street in Manhattan to mark the site of New York's first slave market, which operated between 1711 and 1762. In 2015, a sign was placed nearby, but Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams, a Democrat who sponsored the legislation, said its location is incorrect.

The commission would work with the existing state commission, which is also considering reparations. A report from the state panel, which held its first public meeting in late July, is due in early 2025. The city's effort would not have to produce recommendations until 2027.

The city commission was created out of a 2021 racial justice initiative during Bill de Blasio's administration, which also recommended that the city track cost of living data and add a commitment to remedy "past and ongoing harms" to the preamble of the city charter.

"Your request for reparations and those of your ancestors have not gone unnoticed," said Linda Tigani, executive director of the Commission for Racial Equality, at a press conference before the Council vote.

An analysis of the financial impact of the bills estimated that the studies would cost 2.5 million dollars.

New York is the latest city to study reparations. Tulsa, Oklahoma, where a notorious massacre of black residents took place in 1921, announced a similar commission last month.

Evanston, Illinois, became the first city to offer reparations to black residents and their descendants in 2021, including distributing some payments of US $ 25,000 in 2023, according to PBS. Eligibility was based on damages suffered as a result of the city's discriminatory housing policies or practices.

San Francisco approved reparations in February, but the mayor later cut off the funds, saying the reparations should be carried out by the federal government. California budgeted 12 million dollars for a reparations program that included helping black residents research their ancestors, but it was defeated in the state legislature this month.

(Photo DR)