The California legislature is now moving toward implementing a series of reparation proposals after years of debate. The bills notably do not include the most talked about item: financial reparations. After years of batting around figures as high as $5 million per recipient, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) recently balked at the cost. It is not clear if voters will see this as a bait-and-switch given the building expectation of huge cash awards. However, buried in one of the items in the slew of benefits for African-Americans is the restoration of affirmative action in education.
The 14 bills to “dismantle racism” vary from “natural and protective” hairstyles in all competitive sports to “prohibit[ing] involuntary servitude for incarcerated persons.”
One provision would restore property taken by “race-based” cases of eminent domain. It is not clear how that would work. Taking property by eminent domain requires compensation. If such compensation was not given, it would be a constitutional deprivation regardless of race and all citizens should benefit regardless of race. If it was given, the question becomes whether the compensation is repaid with interest and then the state would have to pay the current owners for the property before giving it back to the earlier owners.
However, the provision that stood out was the bill from Democratic Assembly member Corey Jackson (D., San Diego) to change California’s Constitution to allow the state to fund programs aimed at “increasing the life expectancy of, improving educational outcomes for, or lifting out of poverty specific groups based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or marginalized genders, sexes, or sexual orientations.”
Technically, affirmative action was barred decades ago by the Supreme Court. For decades, universities have avoided the type of outright quota the court held unconstitutional in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978). Justice Lewis Powell wrote. “Preferring members of any one group for no reason other than race or ethnic origin is discrimination for its own sake. This the Constitution forbids.”
However, universities quickly ramped up the use of race under diversity rationales until the recent rulings of the Supreme Court barring the use of race as an admissions criteria.
Californians have repeatedly rejected affirmative action in education despite being a deeply blue state and well-funded campaigns to change the law. This is the latest attempt to restore affirmative action as a matter of reparations. It is not clear how that would work in light of the recent opinions.
While there are a few monetary provisions, the lack of a payment to residents will likely not sit well with some.
For years, Newsom and other Democratic politicians have campaigned on reparations and that bill has now come due. A card and an apology is not going to cut it.
In past hearings, speakers demanded cash in large amounts. Rep. Barbara Lee (D., Cal.) declared that “Reparations are not a luxury, but a human right long overdue for millions of Americans. We are demanding that the government pay their tax.”
She was not talking about a heartfelt apology.
Nor were others at the hearing.
In prior hearings, speakers have been asking “where’s the money.” Some warned the Democratic task force that they would not vote for the party unless they received money before the 2024 elections.
San Francisco’s board of supervisors is also facing the same expectations after a recommendation of its African American Reparations Advisory Committee to give $5 million to each eligible Black resident as reparations.
Some balked at even that figure. Reverend Tony Pierce asked “Where’s the money? Where’s the cash? Where’s the check?” “$5 million, San Francisco’s already made a move. $5 million is nothing.”
Some congressional Democrats have pushed for similar federal reparations and passed a bill out of the House Judiciary Committee in 2021 that failed to receive a floor vote. BET founder Robert Johnson has called for $14 trillion in federal reparations.
Even Disney has gotten into the act with a controversial children’s episode in which cartoon children demand reparations.
Most recently, Rep. Cori Bush (D., Mo.) introduced her bill for a $14 trillion payment to black Americans. Bush could not answer where the money would come from and just said that the source is a matter of ongoing discussions.
Among the Democrats supporting the bill was Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D., N.Y.) who explained “The federal government backed slavery, right? So the federal government needs to hold itself accountable for that. And then policies that have continued throughout American history have continued to inflict harm on Black Americans.”
The years of calls for reparations have created a greater expectation, even an urgency. One well-known California activist declared: “It’s a debt that’s owed, we worked for free. We’re not asking; we’re telling you.”
I’m curious to know how much Constantina is willing to pay in taxes to help the bill for these reparations that she considers so long overdue. The money has to come from somewhere.