Rep. Cori Bush Introduces Bill Calling For $14 Trillion In Reparations For Black Americans

By Aneesa Grant, The Seattle Medium

Missouri Democratic Representative Cori Bush has put forth a bill demanding $14 trillion in reparations for Black Americans. The proposed legislation aims to compensate individuals for the enduring effects of slavery, highlighting the moral and legal obligation of the United States to address the profound harm inflicted upon millions of Black people.

During a recent press conference, Bush emphasized the need for reparations as a means to ensure a prosperous future for all Americans.

“The United States has a moral and legal obligation to provide reparations for the enslavement of Africans and its lasting harm on the lives of millions of Black people,” said Bush. “America must provide reparations if we desire a prosperous future for all.”

“I am one of the 40 million people in this country descended from enslaved Africans. Our ancestors were torn away from their homes and families, enslaved, and forced to fuel this country’s economy since the day it was founded. And then they were left landless, impoverished, and disenfranchised,” added Bush. “Black people continue to bear the harms of slavery and its vestiges, through the Black-white wealth gap, segregation and redlining, disparities in health outcomes, a racist and destructive criminal legal system, and countless other ways. Yet our federal government refuses to acknowledge the lasting harms of slavery and the unjust world it created for Black people. We know this injustice because we experience it every day. This resolution will move us closer to a federal government that acknowledges its responsibility for this injustice and enacts a holistic and comprehensive reparations package that begins to address the harm it has caused, the wealth it has extracted, and the lives it has stolen.”

The conversation surrounding reparations has gained significant momentum in recent years, with numerous cities and states considering their own reparation programs. However, according to NPR, over 90 percent of Republicans oppose reparations, while Democrats are nearly evenly divided on the issue.

In conjunction with her bill, Bush’s Reparations Now Resolution seeks to support existing reparatory justice efforts and bolster federal reparations initiatives such as H.R. 40 and H. Con. Res. 44. The resolution also aims to provide additional momentum to reparations efforts at the state and local levels.

Bush’s resolution has garnered the support of a diverse coalition of nearly 300 organizations, including the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N’COBRA), Color of Change, Action St. Louis, and Human Rights Watch. Prominent figures such as Reverend Jesse Jackson, President of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, have also voiced their support, asserting that America has unfinished business that this legislation can help address.

Adjoa A. Aiyetoro, Co-Facilitator of the National Conference of Black Lawyers (NCBL), emphasized the need for reparations to address the ongoing injuries suffered by African Americans due to historical and systemic discrimination.

“Justice demands reparations that address directly the injuries suffered and continue to be suffered by African Americans in the United States from the enslavement of Africans, the abuse to so-called ‘free Africans’ during the period of enslavement, and the United States’ role in creating and maintaining laws and actions that subordinated African Americans to whites and its allowance of discrimination against African Americans in all areas of life including criminal punishment, education, employment, and housing,” said Aiyetoro.

Dr. Tiffany Crutcher of the Terence Crutcher Foundation also expressed support for Bush’s leadership and the urgency of the Reparations Now resolution. Crutcher emphasized the experiences of recent ancestors, including survivors of the Tulsa race massacre, who confronted anti-Black racism in its most overt forms. The foundation stressed the importance of reparations as a tangible plan for justice and called for swift action to address historical injustices.

As Bush’s bill enters the legislative arena, the response from policymakers, lawmakers, and the public remains uncertain. Nevertheless, proponents hope that the introduction of this reparations bill signifies a significant step towards acknowledging and rectifying the profound impact of slavery and systemic racism in the United States.

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