Democrats Revive Reparations Demand in Congress

Congressional Democrats have once again introduced legislation to force the government to pay for damages suffered by enslaved Black families.

The latest attempt is sponsored by Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., who said in a release, "We are owed restitution and justice to repair the government-sanctioned harm that has plagued our communities for generations."

The new congressional effort, the Reparations Now resolution, was introduced initially in 2023 by then-Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo.

There are similarities, but the Lee resolution is separate from the original reparations demand introduced by the late former Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich. His legislation was designated as H.R. 40. The "40," said Conyers, represented "the 40 acres and a mule that the United States initially promised freed slaves."

That never happened. Conyers and mainly Democrat legislators since then have pursued the demand.

"This unfulfilled promise and the serious devastation that slavery had on African-American lives has never been officially recognized by the United States Government," Conyers wrote.

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., led the reintroduction of H.R. 40 earlier this month. It would create a commission to review slavery's impact on America, including claims of systemic racism, and would also pursue financial payment to descendants of slaves in America.

Lee said she is tired of no action on the issue. "There's no more waiting, no more watering down, no more putting justice on layaway."

She said the act of healing is up to Congress. "Black folks are owed more than thoughts and prayers. We're owed repair, we're owed restitution, and we're owed justice."

• Descendants of Slave Owners and Enslaved People in the Caribbean Call for Reparations at the UN
• Maryland House Approves Bill to Study Reparations