Issue Position: Reparations

Issue Position

Tom is the only candidate to take the bold step of committing to extend a formal apology for slavery. But he won't stop there. Apologies won't address systemic discrimination, poverty, and homelessness. Centuries of legalized murder, rape, torture, discrimination, and property theft has never been accounted for and reconciled.

Tom is also the only candidate that will demand reparations for the descendants of slaves. On day one Tom would establish a commission on race led by African Americans aimed at determining the best solutions. In addition to addressing past wrongs, the commission would also seek to provide African Americans access to the vast opportunity and wealth they and their ancestors helped create in this country. The process will determine how to completely revamp the U.S. federal government to adopt a reparations lens within every department and agency to achieve true equality for African Americans. This means a complete rethinking of institutions like HUD, DOJ, SBA, and others, to develop the means of compensation across the spectrum to achieve true systemic change.

In order to start the process of healing, Americans need to understand that we must address the past, but more must be done through policy both for the present and the future. Policy stems from people's understanding of the world and there has been a false story about this country for centuries.

This country has built a racist system of profits made on the backs of enslaved black bodies. We need to retell the story of America in an honest fashion, specifically with regard to race, and African Americans, and enslavement. We have to tell the story of the contributions of the African American community in building America, but also the story about its moral leadership in this country for centuries. Only then we can create policies to uplift and elevate the African American community.

Source