Ending the Slavery Blame-Game (Obama Favors Reparations in Theory)

New York Times ^ | April 23, 2010 | Henry Lousi Gates, Jr.

[C19fan]

THANKS to an unlikely confluence of history and genetics — the fact that he is African-American and president — Barack Obama has a unique opportunity to reshape the debate over one of the most contentious issues of America’s racial legacy: reparations, the idea that the descendants of American slaves should receive compensation for their ancestors’ unpaid labor and bondage.

There are many thorny issues to resolve before we can arrive at a judicious (if symbolic) gesture to match such a sustained, heinous crime. Perhaps the most vexing is how to parcel out blame to those directly involved in the capture and sale of human beings for immense economic gain.

[2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten]

I favor a giant Beer Summit. Invite all people that had at one point in their lives been enslaved and all people that at one point in their lives had owned slaves. 0bama and Biden can round out the group.

[mojitojoe]

I’m tired of sugar coating too.

[Non-Sequitur]

PING PING PING, here you go, here’s your chance to say Obongo is right, shame on all of us

Obama is wrong.

[Suz in AZ]

Has anyone ever asked if the Africans were going to pay reparations for enslaving the Jews?

[neverdem]

I’m reposting the story and linking your thread. Seeing this denunciation of African involvement in slave trading in the NY Times, and from ‘Skip’ Gates no less, is a breath of fresh air!

[BunnySlippers]

bump

[Captain Kirk]

The depiction here of Gates was always very simplistic. His previous work was not at all race baiting, and showed much thoughtfulness. For this reason, and others, I was not as inclined as some here to automatically take the word of the cops against him.

[Jim Noble]

600 000 white men dead, and seven trillion dollars in transfer payments isn’t enough?