ALBANY – State lawmakers are slated to pass legislation by the end of the week to examine whether black New Yorkers deserve reparations for slavery and other historical wrongs.
The bill would establish a nine-member commission to offer non-binding suggestions on how cash payments, “laws, policies, programs” or other approaches could address racial inequality.
“Reparations is more than just about compensation,” Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages (D-Valley Stream), who is sponsoring the bill, told The Post.
“I think New York is in a unique spot to really define the conversation around reparations and make sure that it’s not just about compensation, but really about acknowledgment and reconciliation of chattel slavery and its legacies.”
The proposal pushes the Empire State toward the center of a national debate over reparations despite the potential political dangers to Democrats following similar efforts in places like California.
Earlier this year, a San Francisco panel recommended black residents get individual payouts of $5 million while a California state task force floated a minimum of $365,000 per person.
“Regardless of the merits of the legislation, National Republicans are going to pounce on this and make it a bogeyman in their war on everything related to addressing historical wrongs. But they will just call it wokeism,” an Albany insider said.
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