Ahhh, therein lies the crux of the matter. I earned my degree from a historically black university. It was interesting, being the only white kid in class, but I digress.
Most of the reparations movement comes from the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) system. I believe this is key to understanding the reparations movement.
HBCUs are dying. Traditionally, they were the only places that African-Americans could get a college degree, and as such they were vital to the African American community. However, as the black middle class has grown, and black opportunities have expanded, the HBCU hold on black higher education has slipped. The unintended consequences of the anti-discrimination laws can be found here, halfway down the page, in the article about Virginia State University, my alma mater.
The bottom line is that HBCUs are dying, and the reparations movement is simply a way to pump badly-needed cash into these universities.
A good parallel is the Harlem Globetrotters. They were so good in the 40's and 50's putting on exhibition games and beating the local teams they played against because blacks were excluded from the NBA. They got all the best black basketball players as a result of that discrimination. Now that blacks dominate the NBA who do the Harlem Globetrotters get? Not the the players with the top ability. They go to the NBA. With colleges, the best blacks go to Harvard and Yale. No need for HBCU.