Slavery Reparations Time Is Now

"The book presents an arguable case that at the relevant time slavery was illegal....a prima facie case for the illegality of slavery, notwithstanding the difference in the practice followed in the colonies....My thanks to Ms. Wittmann, particularly for the wealth of material she has unearthed." - "Patrick Robinson," (Former President) Judge of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. "Dr. Nora Wittmann...has written a brilliant work of deeply researched scholarship....The book is particularly valuable in refuting the arguments commonly advanced against the payment of reparations....Most significantly, she rebuts the argument that 'slavery was legal at the time'....In all that I have read on the subject, this argument has never been presented with such wide-ranging and convincing research....Dr. Wittmann is to be highly praised for the huge contribution to the raising of consciousness...through her work on this eloquent, readable and scholarly book." - "Lord Anthony Gifford," QC, lawyer in Jamaica and the UK, legal pioneer for slavery reparations. "Slavery Reparations Time Is Now" breaks important ground on the matter of reparations for transatlantic slavery and European colonialism. It charts the international legal determinates of the matter in detail, as never done before, and should be part of every home library and of our children's curricula. "Slavery Reparations Time Is Now" pertinently retraces the anchorage of the legal entitlement to reparations within a historical international law perspective, exposing simultaneously the intrinsic link between the necessity of comprehensive reparations and solutions to other major problems that threaten human survival on Earth, such as nuclear and industrial pollution, wars and contemporary forced labor. By proving clearly, based on in-depth research, that the practice of transatlantic slavery was illegal throughout the time it was perpetrated, the book topples the dominant legal and political opinion that aims to deny the right to reparations on grounds that "slavery" would have been "legal" at that time. Yet, although argued totally contrary to the hegemonic opinion, "Slavery Reparations Time Is Now" has been welcomed as making a solid case for transatlantic slavery reparations by erudite experts on the matter, such as Patrick Robinson (former President Judge of the UN Tribunal for Ex-Yugoslavia), Hilary Beckles, Verene Shepherd and Anthony Gifford. Recent years have seen a continuous upsurge of the global movement for reparations for transatlantic slavery and colonialism. In response, the powers-that-be are mounting multiple strategies to confuse the public about reparations. It is therefore crucial that the people get their knowledge right about what is legally due. Sticking to international law, reparations have to be economic, educational, historic, and structural. This profound historico-legal analysis provides the ammunition for the final blow to the hegemonic lie that there would be no legal base for slavery reparations, and is presented in a readable way that lay people without legal formation can easily relate to. Yet, although this book clarifies the legal appropriateness of reparations, it is the people who will at last have to take reparations. A passionate and scientifically solid call for justice, "Slavery Reparations Time Is Now" provides guidance to get there, also addressing the role of popular culture movements such as hip-hop and reggae, and highlighting the fact that icons such as Tupac Shakur were advocating reparations. Only when comprehensive reparation is effectuated for transatlantic slavery can the planet get in balance again and humanity live. "Slavery Reparations Time Is Now" also contains never-before published comments on reparations by Ayi Kwei Armah.

In this sweeping international perspective on reparations, Time for Reparations makes the case that past state injustice—be it slavery or colonization, forced sterilization or widespread atrocities—has enduring consequences that generate ongoing harm, which needs to be addressed as a matter of justice and equity. Time for Reparations provides a wealth of detailed and diverse examples of state injustice, from enslavement of African Americans in the United States and Roma in Romania to colonial exploitation and brutality in Guatemala, Algeria, Indonesia, Jamaica, and Guadeloupe. From many vantage points, contributing authors discuss different reparative strategies and the impact they would have on the lives of survivor or descent communities. One of the strengths of this book is its interdisciplinary perspective—contributors are historians, anthropologists, human rights lawyers, sociologists, and political scientists. Many of the authors are both scholars and advocates, actively involved in one capacity or another in the struggles for reparations they describe. The book therefore has a broad and inclusive scope, aided by an accessible and cogent writing style. It appeals to scholars, students, advocates and others concerned about addressing some of the most profound and enduring injustices of our time.

Slavery and the Atlantic slave trade are among the most heinous crimes against humanity committed in the modern era. Yet, to this day no former slave society in the Americas has paid reparations to former slaves or their descendants. Ana Lucia Araujo shows that these calls for reparations have persevered over a long and difficult history. She traces the ways in which enslaved and freed individuals have conceptualized the idea of reparations since the 18th century in petitions, correspondence, pamphlets, public speeches, slave narratives, and judicial claims. Taking the reader through the era of slavery, emancipation, post-abolition, and the present day and drawing on the voices of various of enslaved peoples and their descendants, the book illuminates the multiple dimensions of the demands of reparations. This new edition boasts a new chapter on the global impact of the Black Lives Matter movement, the seismic effect of the killing of George Floyd, calls for university reparations and the dismantling of statues. Updated throughout, this edition includes primary sources, further readings, and many illustrations.

Racism and discrimination have choked economic opportunity for African Americans at nearly every turn. At several historic moments, the trajectory of racial inequality could have been altered dramatically. But neither Reconstruction nor the New Deal nor the civil rights struggle led to an economically just and fair nation. Today, systematic inequality persists in the form of housing discrimination, unequal education, police brutality, mass incarceration, employment discrimination, and massive wealth and opportunity gaps. Economic data indicates that for every dollar the average white household holds in wealth the average black household possesses a mere ten cents. This compelling and sharply argued book addresses economic injustices head-on and make the most comprehensive case to date for economic reparations for U.S. descendants of slavery. Using innovative methods that link monetary values to historical wrongs, William Darity Jr. and A. Kirsten Mullen assess the literal and figurative costs of justice denied in the 155 years since the end of the Civil War and offer a detailed roadmap for an effective reparations program, including a substantial payment to each documented U.S. black descendant of slavery. This new edition features a new foreword addressing the latest developments on the local, state, and federal level and considering current prospects for a comprehensive reparations program.

The deliberate devaluation of Blacks and their communities has had very real, far-reaching, and negative economic and social effects. An enduring white supremacist myth claims brutal conditions in Black communities are mainly the result of Black people's collective choices and moral failings. “That's just how they are” or “there's really no excuse”: we've all heard those not so subtle digs. But there is nothing wrong with Black people that ending racism can't solve. We haven't known how much the country will gain by properly valuing homes and businesses, family structures, voters, and school districts in Black neighborhoods. And we need to know. Noted educator, journalist, and scholar Andre Perry takes readers on a tour of six Black-majority cities whose assets and strengths are undervalued. Perry begins in his hometown of Wilkinsburg, a small city east of Pittsburgh that, unlike its much larger neighbor, is struggling and failing to attract new jobs and industry. Bringing his own personal story of growing up in Black-majority Wilkinsburg, Perry also spotlights five others where he has deep connections: Detroit, Birmingham, New Orleans, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C. He provides an intimate look at the assets that should be of greater value to residents—and that can be if they demand it. Perry provides a new means of determining the value of Black communities. Rejecting policies shaped by flawed perspectives of the past and present, it gives fresh insights on the historical effects of racism and provides a new value paradigm to limit them in the future. Know Your Price demonstrates the worth of Black people's intrinsic personal strengths, real property, and traditional institutions. These assets are a means of empowerment and, as Perry argues in this provocative and very personal book, are what we need to know and understand to build Black prosperity.

Both an unflinching indictment of past wrongs and an impassioned call to America to educate its citizens about the history of Africa and its people, The Debt says in no uncertain terms what white America owes blacks—and what blacks owe themselves. In this powerful and controversial book, distinguished African-American political leader and thinker Randall Robinson argues for the restoration of the rich history that slavery and segregation severed. Drawing from research and personal experience, he shows that only by reclaiming their lost past and proud heritage can blacks lay the foundation for their future. And white Americans can begin making reparations for slavery and the century of racial discrimination that followed with monetary restitution, educational programs, and the kinds of equal opportunities that will ensure the social and economic success of all citizens. “Engaging...Robinson continues an important conversation...His anecdotes support his attempts to reclaim African American heritage and empower African Americans.”—The Washington Post

What is the just measure of Western obligations to Africa? As Africans and their supporters mark the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade in the United States and Great Britain, the question becomes increasingly salient. Calls for reparations for the evils of slavery, as well as for past colonial and current economic and political abuses, can be heard across Africa and the African diaspora. Human rights scholar Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann examines these calls for redress in Reparations to Africa. Her study analyzes the reparations movement from the perspectives of law, philosophy, political science, and sociology. While acknowledging the brutal background of the slave trade and colonialism, and the mistreatment of the peoples of Africa, Howard-Hassmann finds that the complexity of this history, along with facts of the contemporary situation, weakens the case for financial compensation, although she does recommend acknowledgment of, and apologies for, some actions. The book not only provides a bold reckoning of the root causes, both internal and external, of African underdevelopment and unrest but also suggests alternative means for restorative justice and examines the role that institutions such as the International Criminal Court can play. By including the voices of 74 African academics, diplomats, and activists interviewed by Howard-Hassmann and Anthony P. Lombardo, Reparations to Africa makes a valuable contribution to the reparations debate. In an emotionally and politically charged postcolonial environment, this book serves as a judicious guide to the search for economic justice for Africans today and into the future.

In this well researched and carefully argued book, Horowitz traces the origins of the reparations movement and its implications for American education and culture.