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Loading... From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the Twenty-First Century (2020)by William A. Darity, A. Kirsten Mullen
   None No current Talk conversations about this book. 1   pomo58 | Jun 6, 2022 | 
 Though academic in tone and approach, and therefore unlikely to reach a large audience of general readers, the authors are convincing in their arguments. Essential to any debate over the need for and way to achieve meaningful large-scale reparations.
"Racism and discrimination have choked economic opportunity for African Americans at nearly every turn. In 'From Here to Equality,' William Darity Jr. and A. Kirsten Mullen confront these injustices head-on and make the most comprehensive case to date for economic reparations for U.S. descendants of slavery. After opening the book with a stark assessment of the intergenerational effects of white supremacy on black economic well-being, Darity and Mullen look to both the past and the present to measure the inequalities borne of slavery. Using innovative methods that link monetary values to historical wrongs, they next assess the literal and figurative costs of justice denied in the 155 years since the end of the Civil War. Finally, Darity and Mullen offer a detailed roadmap for an effective reparations program, including a substantial payment to each documented U.S. black descendant of slavery. Taken individually, any one of the three eras of injustice outlined by Darity and Mullen--slavery, Jim Crow, and modern-day discrimination--makes a powerful case for black reparations"-- No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)323.1196Social sciences Political Science Civil and political rights Minority Politics Specific Groups Biography And History African OriginLC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.75)
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Wikipedia in English
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I think as far as making the case, this volume succeeds very well. Only so much detail can be covered in a single book meant for the public, and plenty of detail is covered, but when the time comes for working out details much more will need to be considered. To have left out all of the history would not have made sense here, this is a book that both makes a case for and creates a plan for reparations. One can't plan without making the case.
On reading, I don't see anything that just seems "wrong" in their plan, from who to include to how much. That isn't to say this will end up being the best plan, and perhaps ultimately the most workable plan that still accomplishes the goals will have to be more inclusive, which means altering it from reparations stemming from US slavery to reparations for the many wrongs that went into making the US a white supremacist nation and doing so by using or trying to eliminate entire populations.
So while the case is, I think, made sufficiently well, I view the plan as an opening suggestion in what needs to be a comprehensive settlement but one that happens sooner rather than later. We can't keep this in committees and discussions without clear timetables and goals. At the same time we have to find a way to make the maximum change with one decision so that we aren't repeating this process for every group that has a justification in calling for reparation.
Although this volume left me with as many questions as answers, I do feel like my questions are further along the path than they might otherwise be.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. (