Jackson to make reparations a priority

September 7, 2001
Jackson to make reparations a priority
By Steve Miller
THE WASHINGTON TIMES

The Rev. Jesse Jackson will make reparations for the past enslavement of blacks his No. 1 issue this fall, an aide to the civil rights leader promised yesterday.

The 59-year-old Mr. Jackson will hold a press conference at the Rainbow/PUSH headquarters in Chicago this morning to announce details of his new campaign.

"It is something new, a new priority," said Nizam Arain, acting press secretary for Mr. Jackson, who is scheduled to return tonight from the U.N. World Conference Against Racism. "It was raised and discussed at our annual convention [in August]. There are a variety of angles he intends to use, and I know that legislation is one, maybe even the top angle."

Mr. Jackson stepped up his rhetoric on reparations to American blacks for slavery at the conference this week, telling a news service that "we must make crooked ways straight."

"We have fewer services and less education. We are disproportionately jailed and killed by the state. We have shorter life spans. We have less access to capital," Mr. Jackson told Reuters during the event, which ended yesterday.

Only one African nation, Nigeria, stated during the conference that reparations were not necessary.

Mr. Jackson has had considerable success in his advocacy efforts over the years, from eliciting promises and money from corporate America to enhancing diversity programs, to getting out the black vote in record numbers.

Reparations has never been a top priority for Mr. Jackson, although he has broached the subject over the years. In 1997, he and other civil rights leaders met with President Clinton in the hopes of extracting an official apology for the existence of slavery in the United States.

"An apology is in order," said Mr. Jackson. "But you must not only apologize with your lips. Repent, repair and remedy go together."

In 1993, Mr. Jackson called on Western nations to pay reparations to Africa. Yet he did not mention that the reparations scheme would apply to U.S. blacks.

But emboldened by the acrimonious climate at the conference in South Africa this week, Mr. Jackson began making explicit references to the black community's growing push for reparations.

"In many ways, Africa subsidized America and Europe's development," he told BBC Radio 4's Today program. "If you don't feel apologetic for slavery, if you don't feel apologetic for colonialism, if you feel proud of it, then say that."

Mr. Jackson said that the limited U.S. involvement at the U.N. conference was due to the fear of addressing the issue of reparations. The United States withdrew its participation from the conference following numerous criticisms of Israel's role in the conflict in the Middle East.

"We used the Middle East controversy as an excuse [to avoid slavery]," he said Monday.

Civil rights groups have for years advocated financial compensation for descendants of slaves. The manner of compensation has varied, from sending out sums of money to the country's 34 million blacks, to increased funding for predominantly black schools.

A powerful core of civil rights and class-action lawyers, which includes Johnnie Cochran Jr., is now preparing a lawsuit seeking reparations for American blacks descended from slaves -- the undisclosed amount being sought is said by some to be near a trillion dollars.

A date for filing the action has not been confirmed. Other movements demanding reparations have progressed slowly, gaining stature during the past decade.

One of the most prominent has been the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America, known as N'COBRA, which was formed in 1988. The following year, Rep. John Conyers Jr., Michigan Democrat, introduced a bill calling for a committee to study the effects of slavery.

N'COBRA treasurer Kalonji Olusegun said yesterday that Mr. Jackson's entry into the debate could give the movement important momentum and place the issue at the forefront of American politics.

"His joining of this issue is an indication of the snowballing effect that has occurred in the past year and a half," Mr. Olusegun said. "It has been very difficult for this country to know that it is based on white supremacy."

Eleven cities have so far passed resolutions to study the impact of slavery; the wording of several of those resolutions was based on Mr. Conyers' bill.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has called for a study on reparations since 1991. The Washington office of the NAACP has also lobbied for progress on Mr. Conyers' bill. Mr. Jackson's entry into the fray could give all reparations efforts a boost, an official said.

"Jesse Jackson has always brought a constructive light to these issues," said NAACP legislative director Hilary Shelton. "He is masterful at articulating the issues and he comes to the table with great credibility."

But when Clara Peoples, a reparations advocate from Portland, Ore., asked Mr. Jackson for help several years ago, he rejected her request.

"He didn't pay us any mind," said Miss Peoples, who heads a movement called "Reparations -- Yes." "But we're happy to have him aboard now.

Hmm? Ok, let's see now:

H.R. 666 Jesse Jackson Shake 'em Down & Break 'em Down Reparation Bill

Has a nice ring to it huh? Of course, he'll include the clause about Jesse gits his shea fust, right?

Oh goody goody!! So many folks, white and black detest this man so much, his push for this will poison the idea of reparations in many minds. And that is just fine by me! I hope he goes down in major flames over this!

About that link...thank you-thank you-thank you!!

Simply excellent; without equal.
That one's been bookmarked, baby.

About our *friend*?
The good & honorable Reverend Jackson?
Why I'm going to guess that now his pal (& coconspirator), The Bent1's no longer in office, and the Gorbot was shown the door?
It's the right *time* to crank-up his minions of freaks & fools, huh?
So he might begin in earnest making some real, meaty demands?
All made under the subtle threat of full-scale riots in every major metropolitan city from coast to coast?
And each one layed at the feet of George Bush, eh?
Wellllll...at least that'll be *how* The Associated Press will "report" the full-scale eruption of vandalism.
Yea~yea...

This clown has become way too easy to read.

We should just send Jessie Jackson back over there and call it even.....they can have him. The entire idea of reperations is BS: slavery was around LONG before Western countries showed Africa the way of the modern world. They should be glad we were able to lead so many of them to Christ. All Black Christians owe Westerners a HUGE debt for this...were is our money???

Yeah, and once the 'massas' get your money -- the result of your labor -- they give it to the 'poor' (is this a code word or what?) -- so who is slave to whom??? Who is working and who is sitting at home picking up a free check?

Speaking of making crooked ways straight, isn't Jesse the fellow who hired ex-Congressman Mel Reynolds...after he (Reynolds) got out of prison for having sex with a minor?

--Boris

I can't say your scenario is far-fetched... more's the pity!

That link may have come from here, even if not, there're some good freedom-loving Americans right here:

--Claire Wolfe's Wolfe Lodge-

Grim, how on earth did you people let this activists gain her place in government the first time?

One word: REDISTRICTING.
There I was, 10 years ago, happy as a clam in Bill Archer's district. Then the TX state legislature (then dominated by DIMocrats) re-drew Archer's district and gerrymandered a hideous-looking district map for District 18 (used to be Barbara Jordan, then Mickey Leland). This ensured that any candidate - as long as he/she was black and liberal - would have a permanent seat in the US House.
I was summarily DISENFRANCHISED, being sucked into a tiny corner of District 18, and ultimately into the evil stupid clutches of Queen Sheila of Mars.
Need I say more?

...wears on top of her head is really a cowpie?

It may look like a cowpie, but it is, in fact, a sophisticated transceiver, via which she receives orders from her Martian masters.

YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE.

I don't normally resort to capitaliztion but something just hit my about this. There are about 34.5 million blacks in America. The one trillion dollars requested as restitution equates to about $28.57 for each of this nations black residents.

This is ludicrous. It should be laughed out of court. How can one say, on the one hand, that slavery has resulted in all this damage to blacks, yet, on the other hand, say the damage is the equavalent of about 10 Big Mac's (without fries of course) and expect to be taken seriously.

Jesse Jackson patronizes and insults his own race. Does he really think the thousands of hardworking, tax paying African-Americans would expect their fellow white Americans to pay or apologize for an institution that they had absolotely *NOTHING* to do with? Everyone who had a hand in slavery, whether it be slave masters, bounty hunters, New York Democrats, Southern leaders like Calhoun, or Northern businessman who profited from it, are all DEAD.

......telling a news service that "we must make crooked ways straight."

You'll have to excuse me for a moment, I just fell out of my chair laughing.

Mr. Jackson has had considerable success in his advocacy efforts over the years, from ~~eliciting promises and~~ extorting money from corporate America to ~~enhancing diversity programs to getting out the black vote in record numbers~~ to further entrenching the idea of identity politics.. Reparations has never been a top priority for Mr. Jackson, although ~~he has broached the subject~~ lining his own pockets has always been job one over the years. In 1997, he and other ~~civil rights leaders~~ fellow blackmailers met with President Clinton in the hopes of extracting ~~an official apology for the existence of slavery in~~ gobs and gobs of money from the United States.

We have less access to capital," Mr. Jackson told Reuters...

Who's "we", Mr. Jackass? The Rear-end Jesse Jackass has been extorting money from businesses for years. When talking about lack of access to capital, he has no business using the word "we".

I can't think of a more devisive issue. 40 years in the Welfare State and they still want more.

Wait until the economy REALLY tanks and black unemployment goes back up. Then, with unpayable mortgages, credit card bills, and car notes staring them in the face, even the "reasonable" blacks will start to think this reparations thing sounds pretty darn good.

I've already talked to "reasonable" blacks who think that reparations is very doable. They figure that not even the gubmint has enough money to pay them in dead presidents, but it would be no big thang to just not collect their taxes for 10 or 20 years. Seriously!

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