Learning, Challenges, and Strategies
Summer 2023
03 - Message From Black Reparations Co-Chairs
04 - Conference Proceedings Key Insights
04 - Theme 1: Momentum in the Movement
11 - Theme 2: Reflections on a Multi-tiered Approach
13 - Theme 3: Community Every Step of the Way
14 - Theme 4: The Value of Frameworks
16 - Theme 5: Challenges in Policy Making
19 - Theme 6: Transformation in Philanthropy 21 - Conclusion 23 - Acknowledgements
24 - Appendix
A Message from the Black Reparations Conference Co-Chairs
The Black Reparations Conference took place on February 24, 2023, online via Zoom. The conference was hosted by the Black Reparations Project, a collaborative effort between faculty and students at Mills College at Northeastern University and U.C. Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy. Our work is focused on promoting education and research on Black reparations policies and initiatives in California and across the nation. The Black Reparations Conference aimed to serve as an educational platform and networking hub for individuals involved in the study, advocacy, proposal, and implementation of reparations policies for Black Americans. The goals of the conference were to build connective tissue among Black reparations movement leaders, identify lessons learned from reparations efforts and educate conference attendees about Black reparations and strategies for remedying harm from slavery and its aftermath, articulate controversies within the Black reparations movement, and provide opportunities for connecting, sharing, studying, learning, healing, and movement building.
Over 500 virtual conference attendees participated, including notable figures such as California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber, California State Reparations Task Force Chair Kamilah Moore, and Keynote African American Genealogist, Kellie Farrish, along with 18 additional speakers on reparations. The sessions featured various topics, including a California local Reparations Panel, Trends in Federal, State, and Local Reparations Policies, African American Genealogy Research, the Role of Philanthropy in the Reparations Movement, Joy and Wellness in Reparations Work, and the Conference Closing. The full schedule can be found in the Appendix.
Conference sponsors included Mills College at Northeastern University, Business & Social Sciences Unit March Fong Eu Fund for Public Policy, Northeastern University School of Law Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project, Stupski Foundation, and University of California Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy.
The purpose of this report is to provide documented themes and key insights that manifested during the conference proceedings. In conducting our post-conference analysis, the following themes emerged and are detailed in this report: (1) Momentum in the Movement, (2) Reflections on a Multi-tiered Approach, (3) Community Every Step of the Way, (4) The Value of Reparations Frameworks Challenges in Reparations Policy-Making, and (5) Transforming Philanthropy.
We wish to thank all conference participants, attendees, and the Black Reparations Project team for their support of this conference. It is our hope that this report will aid researchers and policymakers and activists to gain a better understanding of the reparations landscape and lessons learned for the reparations movement.
In Community,
The Black Reparations Project Directors
Dr. Ashley Adams, Director, Mills College at Northeastern University
Dr. Erika Weissinger, Director, UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy
Dr. Darcelle Lahr, Director of Curriculum
Ife Tayo Walker, Director of Events
Conference Proceedings: Key Insights
Introduction
This Black Reparations Conference Report examines themes from the conference proceedings and discusses key insights. We analyzed the transcripts thematically using the qualitative analysis software, Dedoose.
Framework
According to the UN General Assembly Resolution 60/147: Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law, the following components are key to any program of reparations:
Compensation, in which a group of people whose human rights have been violated receive financial amends;
Restitution, which allows an affected population full restoration of their situation before the violations occurred;
Rehabilitation, which would come in the form of government-sponsored medical, legal, and social aid;
Satisfaction, which entails public apologies from the governing body that allowed the harm to occur, recovery and reburial of human remains, memorializing the population who was lost, and encouragement to seek out meaningful truths which have been wrongfully withheld;
and Guarantees of Non-Repetition, which should mean a total overhaul of policies and practices that oversaw the harm done.
Theme 1. Momentum in the Movement
We do not want to repeat the past, so we are moving forward with reparations in this nation. --Dr. Shirley Weber, California Secretary of State
Conference speakers provided evidence for increased momentum for Black reparations in California and across the nation. Below we highlight indicators of progress shared at the conference. The focus of this panel was on efforts underway at the state level in California
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and in municipalities in the San Francisco Bay area. This snapshot reflects the scope of the conference and is not a comprehensive scan of the Black reparations movement in California or nationally.
National Trends
We know that Federal action can be a really long process It's been over 40 years since H R 40 was introduced State and local governments are doing their own work They're not waiting around They're advancing reparations within their jurisdictions within the power and resources that they have available to them, and have in many cases been able to do really incredible things
--Katie Sandson, Racial Redress and Reparations Lab, Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project (CRRJ)
Nearly 100 bills pertaining to redress and reparations were introduced to state legislatures between 2019 and 2022. In the 2021-2022 session, there were approximately double the number of bills compared to previous sessions. Sandson (CRRJ) discussed this during the Trends in Federal, State, and Local Reparations Policies panel. Sandson stated that the momentum at the state level is “being driven by community advocacy, and [we are] seeing legislators try and respond to this pressure that they are feeling from their constituents to act.” Sandson observed that the increase in bill introductions is not limited to “blue states” or specific regions.
CRRJ monitors the types of reparative action that the bills are seeking and if reparative justice efforts are progressing towards tangible acts of repair such as material compensation. Panelist Malcolm Clarke, CRRJ, defined “material compensation” as “both financial compensation for the harms and access to programs and services which will help recover from the effects of that harm.” As of the panel presentation date, most bills that had passed were non-binding and pertained to formal apologies and memorialization.
In terms of Federal action, progress is elusive. However, during the Reparations 101 panel, Dr. Erika Weissinger, UC Berkeley, highlighted a positive indicator - the increase in the number of cosponsors for H.R. 40 (the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act). There were nearly 200 co-sponsors for H.R. 40 in the 117th Congress in 2021. This is the highest number of co-sponsors since the Bill was first introduced in 1989. For comparison, there were only 35 co-sponsors in the 115th Congress (2017-2018).
State of California
You, me, we are closer to reparations than we ' ve ever been…California is already the first state to create a reparations task force, and California… will be the first state to actually do reparations at a state level.
--Chris Lodgson, Coalition For A Just and Equitable California (CJEC)
Several conference speakers addressed the significance of California’s Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans, with a Special Consideration for African Americans Who are Descendants of Persons Enslaved in the United States (the Task Force). The Task Force, established by California Assembly Bill 3121 (AB 3121) “exists to advise the California State Legislature on the types of proposals that it should turn into legislation for subsequent enactment by the Governor” (Kamilah Moore, California Reparations Task Force Chair).
The Task Force has completed its Study Phase and released its Interim Report. The report was informed by research and a series of public hearings conducted to identify and document “historical atrocities against the African American community” (Moore). Acknowledging the enormity of this task, Moore stated, “ It is impossible to fully account for all of the genocidal tactics white supremacists have enlisted against the African American community over generations.”
The Final Report (40 chapters, 1,065 pages) is the first government-commissioned study on the harms against the African American community since the Kerner Commission Report in 1968. It addresses California and the Federal governments’ roles in enslavement and systemic discrimination in the following areas:
Enslavement
Racial Terror
Political Disenfranchisement
Housing Segregation and Unjust Property Takings
Separate and Unequal Education
Racism In Environment
Pathologizing African American Families
Control Over Creative, Cultural, and Intellectual Life
Stolen Labor and Hindered Opportunity
Unjust Legal System
Mental and Physical Harm and Neglect
Wealth Gap
California’s efforts are consequential for the other states and the nation as a whole. As Sandson noted, the Task Force is building the case for Federal reparations by calling out both state and federal roles in the harms and trialing an approach that other states and the Federal government can model. Additionally, California’s efforts have the power to encourage and inspire:
It is my hope that the work of the Task Force reinvigorates the African American community… to exercise our human right to self determination with the renewed energy that enables us to freely determine our status in this country and to pursue our economic, social, and cultural developments (Moore).
The Task Force finalized its policy recommendations in late July, 2023 and the final report was delivered to the California State Legislature.
Bay Area Municipalities
We have a hope deficit from all of the things that we ' ve experienced But we have plenty of evidence that it [Black reparations] can happen, and that it will happen
--Tinisch Hollins, Vice Chair, San Francisco African American Reparations Advisory Committee (AARAC)
The California Reparations Panel included speakers representing reparative justice efforts in Alameda County and the cities of Hayward, Richmond, San Francisco, and Vallejo. These speakers provided insights into many ways to approach reparative justice. Some of the efforts undertaken by these municipalities are shown in Table 1 below. We include a few examples for each municipality, rather than an exhaustive list. The table includes a mix of proposed, in progress, and completed initiatives.
Table 1. Examples of Reparative Justice Efforts in Bay Area Municipalities
Municipality Form of Repair Description
Acknowledgement, Apology
Alameda County
Hayward
Multiple forms of repair
Other
Acknowledgement, Apology
Issued a formal apology for enslavement and racial segregation
Establishing an Alameda County Reparations Commision to engage with the community, enable truth telling, and develop an action plan for reparative justice
Removing harmful racial language from home deeds
Issued formal apology to the former residents of Russell City and their descendants
Multiple forms of repair Russell City Reparative Justice Project: fact finding, truth telling, recommendations and implementation of actions
Truth Telling
Acknowledgement, Apology
Commemoration and memorialization
Richmond
San Francisco
Material reparations
Other
Acknowledgement, Apology
Material reparations
Vallejo
Researchers investigating historical harms in Russell City First seeking property titles to ascertain who lost property
Working to pass a resolution acknowledging the racism and wrong doings of the past
Looking at establishing heritage trails
Proposals to address housing inequalities, e.g., increasing funding for a CBO that provides payment assistance and making surplus land purchase options available first to Black business and home purchasers
Business development proposals include a set-aside for African American businesses for city procurement and a Cannabis Equity Ordinance to facilitate entrance into the cannabis market for those impacted by the War on Drugs
Proposing formal apology for past harms
Considering financial compensation, land transfer, debt clearance and other measures
Other May propose an independent Office of Reparations to execute the reparations plan
Material reparations
Multiple forms of repair
Other
Seeking to reconnect the Crest Neighborhood with the downtown core by accessing federal infrastructure funding
Conducting community based research on what citizens would like to see in a reparations package
Looking at climate equity in land use decisions
Alameda County
Nate Miley, President of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, spoke about the County’s restorative justice efforts since issuing a formal apology in 2011. Among other things, the County is forming a Reparations Committee to:
... develop an action plan to address the legislative, social and economic inequities faced by African Americans. We accepted this responsibility because we knew that these inequities needed to be addressed, particularly as it relates to the implicit, sanctioned discriminatory practices…that Alameda County was part of. (Miley)
Miley also commented on efforts to redact unlawful, racist restrictions in real estate documents (See Restrictive Covenant Modification Plan for Alameda County). While these racist restrictions are unenforceable they should still be removed. California law (AB 1466) now requires that California Recorders (county level officials) identify and redact these restrictions.
City of Hayward
In the City of Hayward, a major focus for restorative justice efforts is addressing the historical displacement of residents from Russell City:
Russell City was an unincorporated area in Alameda County that was home to indigenous and African American people and Latinx individuals… They made a community there, but they were not able to get Alameda County to provide them with basic municipal services. And so at some point in the early 1960’s the area was considered a blight, and therefore the city of Hayward was able to take over that land and displace the people of Russell City…(Regina Youngblood, Hayward Assistant City Manager)
In 2021, the Hayward City Council issued a formal apology to former Russell City residents and their descendents for the “forced relocation of that community, as well as additional roles in the form of redlining and steering individuals of color away from Hayward into other communities (Youngblood).” The City has invited former residents and descendents to recommend remedies for the harms caused by the relocation. The community steering committee is discussed further under Theme 3: Community Every Step of the Way.
City of Richmond
Demnlus Johnson III, former Councilementer and Vice Mayor of Richmond, presented a range of reparative justice proposals that aim to “address the anti-Black actions and policy decisions made by past councils and mayors of the city of Richmond.” Housing inequalities are one area of focus. Johnson provided historical context:
Richmond's black population boomed during the Second World War and as a result the housing authority built several wartime housing projects, and they were all segregated.The ones that were inhabited by Black Americans were built with subprime material and eventually had to be torn down because of mercury that was found in the ground. Also African American citizens were not allowed to buy homes in Richmond proper. They were only allowed to buy homes in the unincorporated areas of North Richmond.
Actions to address this history (along with more recent harm from the 2008 mortgage crisis) may include increasing the reach of down payment assistance. The City could provide additional funding to a Community Based Organization working in this space. A sample of other items discussed by Johnson includes:
Equity around safe and affordable water and street paving; Community engagement on how to improve city services; and Redirecting a portion of police funding to other services.
City of San Francisco
Tinisch Hollins, San Francisco AARAC, reported on progress towards reparations. Hollins touched on many aspects of San Francisco’s context including the history of Black contributions to San Francisco that have been hidden or ignored. The AARAC was created in 2020 by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and is tasked with developing a plan to:
… address the institutional city sanctioned harm that has been inflicted upon the African American communities in San Francisco. Our focus in the report and recommendations are around improving education, housing, workforce development, economic opportunities, financial stability, small business, transit access and food security. While, of course, reducing violence, health disparities and the overall criminalization that we experience in our community (Hollins).
The Committee has released a draft report of over 100 recommendations. They are working towards a final version to be submitted in June of 2023. Hollins reflected on progress towards reparations and the need to persevere:
So the activist and organizer in me just wants to plead to those who are also doing work in the academic and government [areas] to keep encouraging our people to show up, to believe that this is real, that the opportunity is right in front of us and we will see redress for the harm done to Black people sooner than later Because we ' re working on it and we ' re getting closer every day
City of Vallejo
As researcher Dr. Kerby Lynch discussed the need for reparative justice in the City of Vallejo she shared historical context. For instance, W.E.B. Debois chartered the first NAACP chapter west of the Mississippi in Vallejo and the City was the first in California to desegregate schools. In terms of challenges she noted that Vallejo’s Solano County is:
The poorest county out of the nine Bay Area counties and we also have the most Black people per capita in the State of California…There's so many things about Solano County, Vallejo that go understated and unacknowledged. And with that there’s a lot of pain, oppression, and suffering that’s been experienced by this community that we want to bring to the forefront.
Terrance Davis, Vallejo Assistant City Manager, spoke about seeking federal funding via the Infrastructure Bill’s Reconnecting Communities segment to reconnect Vallejo’s Crest Neighborhood with economic and educational opportunities. The Crest Neighborhood was isolated from downtown by a highway installation:
At the time, the residents opposed [the highway routing] and proposed alternatives. And the alternative, if you could guess, was to go through a golf course. And instead homes were impacted, and that community remains cut off…between the rest of the downtown core because of Highway 37 (Davis).
Theme 2. Reflections on a Multi-tiered Approach
I hope that municipalities, other States, and most importantly, the Federal Government look to the State of California as we trailblaze in setting the precedent for what reparatory and transitional justice looks like for African Americans and society at large. [Moore]
An underlying concept of the conference was the belief that, given the harm inflicted on African Americans at municipal, state, and federal levels, remediation must be equally comprehensive, encompassing all these levels. Dr. Shirley Weber also spoke about this:
And while the State is leading this effort… we are excited about the fact that many of our cities, like Hayward and Vallejo and Sacramento and San Diego and Culver City are addressing and developing their own plans for reparations. Some nonprofits are doing likewise. And many of them are coming up with some excellent examples and recommendations that they themselves can offer to the question of reparations.
Sandson considered the interplay between local, state, and federal action on reparations. She acknowledged that there is debate within the Black reparations movement about the appropriate roles for different levels of government. She began with reinforcing that federal action is necessary:
There is certainly an argument that the Federal Government is the most appropriate target for reparations. It's the entity with the ability to provide reparations at the largest scale within the US context to ensure standard availability of reparations nationally. And most importantly… federal action played a really important role in the harms that we are talking about today.
Sandson then described how state and local efforts can help build the case for federal reparations:
For example…the California task force interim report breaks down the actions that the Federal Government took and the State of California took….laying the groundwork to say that this is what California did, and the repair that they have to make. But there was a federal role here, too, and it's laying that groundwork for federal action
Additionally, state and local efforts can contribute to full repair by addressing components of harm for which they are responsible or are best placed to address. Given that restorative and transitional justice frameworks consist of multiple components of repair, Sandson mused:
You can see how some different components might lend themselves particularly well to state and local action, how they might be able to be tailored, particularly at the local level, to address specific historical wrongs to respond to the different needs of specific communities… and if you consider the core principles of these frameworks, that there's a requirement of accountability, of broad participation, then it follows that all of these different actors and entities, including state and local governments, have an obligation to address their own historical wrongs.
Finally, there may be action needed at multiple levels of government to achieve full repair because of the relationships between state and local laws and policies:
So you might need a change in state law in order to bring about a particular type of repair at the local level just given the dynamics of state and local power. And so there are places where actors at different levels of government are going to need to collaborate, to bring this type of full repair (Sandson)
Another benefit of multi-tiered efforts is that action in one place can inspire others to act. As Johnson put it:
After having seen what some other municipalities were able to put together in terms of reparations I said ‘why not us?’ Richmond is one of the most historically Black cities in the United States…we’ve had some ups and some downs, and I wanted to make sure that the… survivors of a lot of those downs were fairly compensated.
Theme 3: Community Every Step of the Way
So I think [we need] parity from the get-go, from step one. The development of the policies, the development of the research, the development of the policy making, the assessment of the policy making [all] must be based within the communities.
--Dr. Linda Mann, African American Redress Network
Grassroots efforts continue to propel the Black reparations movement forward. The centrality of community involvement was touched upon by many panelists. For instance, Lodgson described the efforts of CJEC to support reparations at the state level:
We decided to get involved in reparations, and we started talking to folks in…the State Government… Dr. Shirley Weber… welcomed us with open arms. And she let us help write the first version of this law [AB 3121]. Since then we helped pass the law. We were at every single committee hearing, every single committee vote, every single floor vote. We worked to… motivate the Governor to sign the law. Then we helped recommend folks to the State people who were picking the Task Force members…and since then we ' ve been working to educate the people by holding community meetings, community town halls, community listening sessions, and community information sessions about California reparations.
Other examples of community involvement were shared at the conference along with insights on best practices. While communities exist at various scales (e.g., survivors and descendents of specific, localized harms versus large communities within a state) core best practices apply at all scales:
Communities should have parity with other parties and should be welcomed to engage at every step of the journey;
When taking the lead, governmental entities or other institutions should respect and empower communities;
Communities undertake heavy work and should be supported with needed resources; and When working with communities, representatives from institutions should be aware of their organization's inherent biases and historical baggage.
Parity
When discussing community leadership and involvement, Mann emphasized the need for parity between communities and other involved parties. She referenced Lode Walgrave’s scholarship on restorative justice and his advice that community members should be engaged at every step of the way. She cited a program at Montpelier Museum in Virginia that affords the descendent community equal power and involvement in decision-making for a program on James Madison’s historic home. In describing how the African American Redress Network approaches working with community groups, Mann related that:
Many of these communities are working on reparation efforts at the local and state level and basically doing this work at 3 a.m. after they worked three jobs and are so committed to seeking repair it's an incredibly overwhelming undertaking…this is such a trauma-centered work process that really can zap the energy It's a lot for descendant communities and survivors We need to not ask them to carry that [alone]
The African American Redress Network seeks to provide expertise and resources in a way that respects the knowledge and effort that community groups are deploying Mann described it this way:
[We] work alongside these grassroots efforts that are already engaged in self emancipatory praxis, that are their own knowledge producers We offer research and resources to them to assist them in advancing the reparations claims We give the funding directly to the communities Because they are the ones who are the knowledge producers They are the experts, and they should be leading us in how to determine harm, repair, and what is meaningful to them
Navigating Institutional Biases and Historical Context
Government actors as well as universities, academic institutions, and non-profit organizations may all play useful roles in the Black reparations movement. In fact, the workload is so vast that several speakers called for a “all hands on deck” approach. However, awareness of institutional histories is important. As Mann cautioned:
universities as an institution themselves oftentimes were advanced through colonialistic exercises Most of the universities that we know of as being Ivys were founded and funded on enslavement practices. Those would include Harvard and Yale and Princeton and Rutgers, Brown, Columbia. And so, when we think about that, we need to be very thoughtful about the institution we are in and how our own actions within this space can continue that same narrative.
Theme 4. The Value of Frameworks
Compensation plus restitution plus rehabilitation plus satisfaction plus guarantees of non-repetition equals reparations.
--Chris Lodgson
Clarke, Sandson, and Mann described several frameworks for reparations. Clarke characterized frameworks as useful guides rather than rigid prescriptions. Sandson noted that “there are a lot of parallels in the different approaches that each of our organizations take… even if it's slightly different terminology or slightly different categorizations.”
CRRJ makes use of restorative justice and transitional justice frameworks when building reparative processes for the families they are assisting and when monitoring legislative policy-making efforts. Clarke described the common principles in these frameworks: “Both of these frameworks share a focus on truth and accountability, on reconciliation, on participation by all affected parties as elements of the path towards repair.”
The African American Redress Network uses the international human rights framework. Shortcomings in US legal frameworks point to a need to draw upon international human rights frameworks, according to Sandson:
US Legal frameworks are not particularly friendly in the way they are structured to these types of reparations, claims for broad historical human rights abuses There is a benefit to thinking about what other tools exist outside of our legal frameworks. And the international human rights frameworks provide both a model for thinking about the claims and also for bringing these arguments in different ways, and through different forums.
The International Human Rights Framework
Mann noted that the heart of the international human rights framework is “the right to remedy, the right to reparations.” This right is established within international human rights law. Mann stated that, “there are multiple international doctrines and treaties that are positioned, that…when a State or a government has not provided human rights protections that people have a right to seek repair.”
Mann walked through the five categories for remedy as set out by Resolution 60-47 authored by the International Commission of Jurists. She emphasized that the doctrines on remedy are clear that “all five categories must be met to have full repair”:
1.
2.
3.
5.
Restitution (victims restored to “original situation” prior to the human rights violations)
Compensation (monetary award for “economically accessible damage”)
Rehabilitation (medical, psychological, legal, social supports)
Satisfaction (e.g., truth-seeking, public apologies, commemoration, memorialization)
4. Guarantees of non-repetition (e.g., institutional reforms, “promotion of human rights standards in public service” etc)
Clarke and Mann saw the use of international frameworks as tightly connected with applying learnings and experience from international contexts:
Reparations have occurred in a lot of different contexts. In every context where… people of African descent exist And so there's lessons to be learned when you look at the Caribbean experience, the experience of African countries that have been colonized we can't simply focus on the American context when we ' re talking about reparations, because there's so much to be learned from international human rights and international contexts (Clarke)
The reverberating impact of colonialism throughout the world is a global issue, and we are a part of that conversation So we want to do this work to heal our country But we also want to recognize that we are part of a bigger issue, and there was a lot of reverberating effects [from] colonization throughout the whole entire globe (Mann)
Restorative Justice
Clarke explained that the Restorative Justice Framework has the goal of bringing affected parties “back to the state they would have existed in had the wrong not occurred.” Reparations through a restorative justice lens is about identifying harms and trying to heal those harms. page 15
Transitional Justice
Clarke noted that Transitional Justice is a framework for responding to “systemic or widespread human rights violations.” A restorative justice process could be taken within a transitional justice framework but transitional justice recognizes that “ some harms can’t be addressed restoratively.”
Transitional justice seeks to hold perpetrators of harms accountable to the victims and to recognize the harms done. It also seeks to rebuild trust in institutions and the rule of law. The pillars of transitional justice are:
Truth Seeking
Acknowledgement and Apologies
Commemoration, Memorialization
Material compensation
Guarantees on non-repetition
Theme 5. Challenges in Policy Making
The conference proceedings touched on aspects of reparative justice policy making that appear particularly important and uniquely challenging. These challenges are relevant to local, state, and national efforts:
Broadening public support in order to pass more legislation and move along the spectrum towards tangible repair;
A significant research burden due to harms being hidden, ignored, or denied; and
Protecting personal safety and addressing trauma in a context where racist threats and vitriolic criticism remain commonplace.
Broadening Public Support
Several speakers touched on the need to grow societal support for reparations. For instance, Hollins described the challenge in San Francisco:
There's a lot of misconception and misunderstanding about what it [reparations] is, and how it can be issued and why it's necessary We are having conversations with folks who are non-Black, because San Francisco's Black population has declined to less than 10% over the years there needs to be education [for] all of the members of the Board of Supervisors, all of their Districts, and all of their constituents to understand the importance of reparations for it to continue to be a City priority.
Weber commented on public support when she reflected on authoring AB 3121:
I knew that California, being one of the largest economies in the world… with the most diverse population of individuals in this nation, had not only the capacity and the resources, but sometimes the will, which is so essential to providing reparations.
She further commented that, “California was able to take the first steps toward reparations, because our coalition always looked to collaborate, to educate and grow the movement.”
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The Research Effort
Each reparative justice endeavor discussed at the conference entails research to uncover the truth about the harms and ascertain who suffered and how. Research is essential for healing and for designing appropriate repair. The research needs of the movement seem uniquely challenging because:
The breadth and depth of harms is immense;
Fact discovery may be painstaking because white dominated entities have ignored, distorted or hidden facts; and The subject matter is traumatic.
The comments of Moore underscore the enormity of the research task in reparations policy:
Chattel slavery, sharecropping, convict leasing, de jure segregation and the fact of segregation, redlining, educational funding discrepancies, predatory financial practices, unfair labor practices, chronic unemployment, under employment, medical experimentation, sterilization, intellectual property deprivation, environmental terror, family separation, police brutality, . Anti African American Black hate crimes, vigilante violence, extra judicial terror, police brutality, over policing, unfair sentencing, school to prison pipeline, extreme poverty, homelessness, gentrification, health harms, no generational wealth. These are just a sampling of the atrocities exacted against the African American community since our ancestors first stepped their shackled feet on American soil in 1619.
Offering guidance to other communities undertaking research Lynch cautioned that “this history may not be Google-able. It may not be written..it’s really up to you to start piecing [it together]…”
The City of Hayward is grappling with the challenges of finding the historical details of Russell City:
So these researchers that have been hired for the project have been finding first the titles of the residents who owned. We acknowledged that there were also people that rented. But [we are] starting with the history that we have. And given the unique history of Russell City [finding] the records has been a little challenging.. (Jenny Chacon, City of Hayward)
Organizations such as the African American Redress Network provide support for research, but the demand for assistance is greater than organizational capacity. The types of support the Redress Network provides may include:
Historical analysis, really looking at what injustices had occurred, doing archival research, genealogical research, sometimes looking at land ownership, mortgage deeds, etc. And then we do an impact analysis. So some type of analysis looking at measurable harms, we ' ve done economic impact analysis. We've done social determinants of health analysis (Mann).
Sandson emphasized the need for universities and academic institutions to contribute, recognizing that despite their complex histories and challenges, they are rich in resources such as information, research capabilities, and funding She advocated for a thoughtful approach in aligning these assets with community necessities in a manner that not only serves the interests of the institutions but also addresses the needs of the community in a reciprocal and attentive way
Another aspect of research applies to individuals who wish to trace their geneology, perhaps as part of determining eligibility for reparations In her address to the conference, genealogist Kellie Farrish walked through the process of genealogical research and discussed how to make use of the archival resources available She detailed the challenges in tracing Black family lineages in a society where racism dictated whose names and vital statistics were recorded and tracked, e g census records
Personal Safety and Trauma Exposure
An additional challenge in reparations policy making is the safety and well-being of those involved. For instance, Hollins, San Francisco AARAC, spoke about what happened after the Committee’s draft plan was shared with the press. The plan suggested reparations payments of $5 million per recipient based upon impact analysis. Critics fixated on the proposed sum:
We have received a lot of criticism and backlash, death threats, violent emails and voicemails. Lots of engagement and interrogation by the press and media about how we came up with that figure of $5 million dollars, and little to no attention to the other 110 recommendations that are in the plan (Hollins).
Government entities involved in reparations are likely grappling with safety concerns for their employees and community members. Ensuring measures are in place to identify credible threats, protect identities when possible, seek consent for public exposure, and otherwise keep people safe should be a high priority.
Similarly, resources for trauma care are needed. Holistic healing practices to address trauma were part of the conference. The session on Joy and Wellness in Reparations Work, led by Ciera B. Lewis invited participants to participate in breathwork, movement, and meditation. Partnerships with healing practitioners may be valuable connections to support self care.
Dr. Darcelle Lahr shared thoughts on the power of unity in facing trauma:
In this discussion there is enormous current and historical trauma that we are all carrying, and one of the things that we want to remind ourselves…we are in this together…reparations is not a single word. It is not a single thing. It may look different in different places for different peoples, but everyone is harmed by what has happened historically, and what is happening currently. We need to come together and find a way to move through this with courage, and that means doing it together.
Theme 6. Transformations in Philanthropy
We're not going to get to where we need to go as a country without reparations. And philanthropy can help us get there a lot quicker.
--Jennie Goldfarb
Panelists discussing philanthropy at the conference described changes needed to better support the Black reparations movement. Panelists emphasized that:
Philanthropic giving should support efforts to bring about reparations but should not be conflated with reparations itself;
End-to-end transformation in philanthropy is needed so that more funding reaches more organizations to support a wide range of endeavors; and People involved in philanthropy from top to bottom have a responsibility to understand the origins of philanthropic wealth and take corrective actions.
Each panelist described transformative work underway. For instance, Katherine Ponce, National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, spoke of her organization’s research on origin stories and their intent to hold organizations accountable for the racism, exploitation, and other harms that underpin wealth. Pat Clark, Fund for Nonviolence, values the relationships being built between her organization and community groups as her foundation has begun funding reparations work. Jennie Goldfarb, Liberation Ventures, described her organization’s focus on trust and true partnership as they expand their funding of Black led groups.
Positioning Philanthropy
Philanthropic support is hugely important to supporting organizations that are leading this work on the ground. But grants are not reparations.
--Jennie Goldfarb
The panelists took care to distinguish the support needed for the Black reparations movement from the delivery of actual reparations. In most reparation endeavors the goal is for a government entity to take responsibility for harms that government actors caused. Community groups and other organizations that are seeking remedy from the government need sustained funding as they pursue reparations.
There was brief discussion of organizations that transfer money directly to descendents of enslaved people. Ponce noted that, “individuals who technically do not have the same endowment infrastructure we're talking about, but do have a lot of resources and money…are doing that type of work.” Similarly, Goldfarb noted that “there are a few foundations that are interested in moving money directly to descendants” and there are some “high net wealth individuals that are far along in their journey around giving, and some of them see that work as individual acts of reparations.”
Transforming Philanthropy
Philanthropy needs to abundantly fund Black led organizations leading reparations work around the country. It needs to fund groups focused on the national, regional, city, town, community levels. It needs to fund narrative and cultural work that strengthens the movement and helps get the right messages to the right audiences. It needs to fund groups that are working together in solidarity with each other (Goldfarb).
In order for philanthropic organizations to meet funding needs there are shifts required in how these organizations approach their work. Panelists identified key areas of change:
Awarding more funding to Black communities
Paying out greater percentages of the total value of the endowment
Measuring success differently
Greater trust and partnership, including less onerous requirements for grantees
Avoiding “movement capture”
Panelist Ponce urged philanthropies to take a hard look at how funding decisions are made. She spoke to the findings of the report Black Funding Denied, produced by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy. Researchers found continued underinvestment in Black communities: one percent of grantmaking from the 25 foundations in their research sample was designated for Black communities; The Black population in the relevant cities was about 15 percent of the total population.
Panelists Goldfarb and Clark argued for foundations to go beyond awarding the required minimum of five percent of the value of the endowment For Clark, when her organization became a “spend down foundation” she felt this was “ one of the most liberating things that could have happened to us ” In a spend-down scenario, giving outpaces the earnings of the foundation’s investments This limits the lifespan of the foundation while enabling it to award more annually What is more typical, Clark noted, is for funders to “ open up their purse strings for [a] particular crisis, and then shut the purse strings again I think that we really need to encourage folks to look at [if they] really need all of those resources in an endowment ”
Panelists also suggested that foundations should measure success differently:
foundations have a tendency to want to see major impact immediately Somehow getting folks to recognize that the harm has been done over a number of years, the wealth has been created over a number of years and has impacted adversely on a number of communities So to expect immediate returns on investment from philanthropy is just ludicrous one of the biggest challenges is how to get them [philanthropies] to think about the investment very differently, and look at this as a long term movement that they also need to be involved in (Clark)
Ponce emphasized that foundations need to move away from thinking, “this is how we ’ re going to solve the problem in one year ” What is needed is multi-year funding, less onerous application processes, and willingness to fund operational expenses. She referenced her
organization’s 2009 publication Criteria for Philanthropy at its Best as a resource. Goldfarb raised concerns about “movement capture” when the priorities and values of funders force organizations to change their strategies in order to receive funding. She argued that:
Philanthropy needs to work in a relational and trust-based model focusing on building durable, longterm relationships with people, and cut out all the unnecessary paperwork and bureaucracy and paternalistic expectations that philanthropy sets forth (Goldfarb)
Goldfarb described Liberation Venture’s efforts to reimagine charitable giving While her organization is not a foundation, they receive some funding from foundations She described the direction her organization is moving:
Last year Liberation Ventures funded 1 million dollars to 14 Black lead groups This year we ' ve doubled that, and we ' re funding 2 million dollars to 31 Black led groups And we ' re doing that with no proposals no project limitations Everything is from a place of trust and relationship building
Clark reported efforts to create a partnership with recipients and ease administrative burdens For example, by having conversations rather than requiring written progress reports
Clark discussed the Fund for Nonviolence’s decision to focus on reparations as part of realizing they “needed to start thinking much more positively about the society we wanted to create” and about the repair needed to “address things that have caused great harm to many people in this society ” She sees a role for philanthropies who have entered this space to encourage additional donors to do the same:
I think one of the other things that philanthropy can do is to begin to reach out to other donors, philanthropists and say, ‘Look, here are some organizations doing some really good work around reparations.’ Put those organizations in front of donors because we know how hard it is for organizations to get access to donors and to foundations.”
Goldfarb also spoke to the need to broaden foundational support for reparations. She explained the challenges:
These funders don't want to act unless enough supposedly vetted groups do something before them, which is mostly due to white boards that are out of touch with what's happening on the ground. It’s really exhausting to constantly feel like you have to prove something that everyone else knows is true.
Philanthropic Histories
The discussion of philanthropic histories centered on the need for a reckoning that inspires action. Ponce spoke about the challenge of communicating philanthropic histories. She has observed a tendency for people to “disassociate” and “refer to themselves as an observer.” Ponce encouraged productive reflection on origin stories of philanthropic wealth:
It should read as these are conscious decisions that everyone was making every single day that continue to suppress Black people and have the other side continuously benefit from it…My goal as a researcher is ‘how does it also call people in?”
Clark shared her organization’s journey to examine their origin story and change their philanthropic focus. They began funding reparation work while simultaneously undertaking self education and reflection:
with our staff we began a study circle where we focus on reparation issues pertaining to African American constituencies, indigenous communities and they examined how the foundation’s wealth was generated I've worked with this foundation for almost 25 years, and we really never talked about how the wealth of the foundation was generated
Goldfarb summed up the problematic nature of philanthropic wealth and the need for moving forward in new ways:
Philanthropic wealth, like all extreme wealth [is created by] the extraction of resources from the earth and the exploitation of people In addition to slavery, that includes the genocide of indigenous people, land theft The creation of this wealth produces extreme inequality and violations that necessitate the circumstances and the need for social movements And then the people and corporations that have accumulated this wealth are somehow responsible, without any oversight or expertise, for finding and funding the right organizations to clean up the mess that they have created It's a pretty unbelievable system and this is exactly the reason why philanthropy needs to play a critical role in supporting the movement for reparations
Conclusion
The Black Reparations Project has answered this call to help unite and share a vision, learnings. And next steps. I ask that you listen today with an open heart and open mind and channel any frustrations from the past that you may have and to hope for the future.
--Dr. Shirley Weber
The Black Reparations Conference shed light on the complexities and challenges associated with reparations and the research efforts required to uncover the truth about historical harms. Weber's comments highlighted the importance of public support and collaboration in advancing the reparations movement. The enormity of the research task was emphasized by Moore, who listed numerous atrocities inflicted upon the African American community throughout history. The conference recognized the need for research to uncover hidden facts and the traumatic nature of the subject matter.
The report also discussed the importance of personal safety and trauma care for individuals involved in the reparations process. The experiences shared by Hollins and the need to protect identities and ensure safety for all involved were highlighted. The conference also
emphasized the role of holistic healing practices and partnerships with healing practitioners to support self-care.
Philanthropy was recognized as a crucial source of support for organizations leading the reparations movement. Panelists discussed the need for transformative changes in philanthropic practices, including greater funding for Black-led organizations, higher percentages of endowment payouts, and increased trust and partnership with grantees. The distinction between philanthropic grants and actual reparations was made clear, with the goal being government responsibility for the harms caused.
Overall, the conference provided valuable insights into the research, safety, and philanthropic aspects of the reparations movement. It emphasized the need for collaboration, public support, and transformative changes in order to achieve meaningful progress in addressing historical injustices and achieving reparative justice.
Suggested citation:
Adams, A., Weissinger, E., Bohl, S., Lahr, D., & Walker, I. T. (2023). Black Reparations Report: Learning, Challenges, & Strategies in the Movement for Black Reparations; The Black Reparations Project at Mills College at Northeastern University, UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy.
Acknowledgments
The Black Reparations Conference Co-Chairs would like to also thank and acknowledge the following individuals who supported the conference planning and research tremendously
We also extend a special thank you to our sponsors:
Mills College at Northeastern University, Business & Social Sciences Unit March Fong Eu Fund for Public Policy
Northeastern University School of Law Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project
Stupski Foundation
University of California Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy
Black Reparations Project Team
Dr. Ashley Adams, Director, Mills College at Northeastern University
Dr. Erika Weissinger, Director, UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy
Dr. Darcelle Lahr, Director of Curriculum
Ife Tayo Walker, Director of Events
Imani N. Karpowich-Smith, Visual Content Creator
Magda Cooney, Communications & Technology Coordinator
Sarah Bohl, Qualitative Researcher
Yeaye Stemn, Research Assistant
Alec Edges, Research Assistant
David Dixon, BRP Fellow
Meklit Billard, BRP Fellow
Sophie Kelsey, BRP Student Notetaker
BLACK REPRATIONS PROJECT CONTACT INFORMATION
MillsCollegeat Northeastern UniversityBlack ReparationsProject
5000MacArthurBlvd, Oakland,CA94613
EMAIL: blackreparationsproject@neu.edu
WEBSITE: reparations.sites.northeastern.edu
SOCIAL MEDIA: @blackreparationsproject
Appendix
Schedule
Pre-conference: February 23, 2023
Reparations 101: From 40 Acres and a Mule to H.R. 40
Conference date: February 24, 2023
Opening Remarks and Welcome: CA Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber and CA
Reparations Task Force Kamilah Moore
California Reparations Panel
Trends in Federal, State, and Local Reparations Policies
Keynote Speaker: Genealogy with Kellie Farrish
Role of Philanthropy in the Reparations Movement
Joy and Wellness in Reparations Work and Conference Closing
Speaker Biographies and Session Descriptions
Opening Remarks
Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D. (she/her)
California Secretary of State
Shirley Nash Weber, Ph.D. was nominated to serve as California Secretary of State by Governor Gavin Newsom on December 22, 2020 and sworn into office on January 29, 2021. She is California’s first Black Secretary of State and only the fifth African American to serve as a state constitutional officer in California’s 170-year history.
Weber was born to sharecroppers in Hope, Arkansas during the segregationist Jim Crow era. Her father, who left Arkansas after being threatened by a lynch mob, did not have the opportunity to vote until he was in his 30s. Her grandfather never voted as custom and law in the South, before the Voting Rights Act of 1965, systematically suppressed voting by Blacks. Although her family moved to California when Weber was three years old, it was her family’s experience in the Jim Crow South that has driven her activism and legislative work. She has fought to secure and expand civil rights for all Californians, including restoring voting rights for individuals who have completed their prison term.
Welcome Message
Kamilah Moore, (she/her)
California Reparations Task Force Chair
Kamilah Moore is a reparatory justice scholar and an attorney with a specialization in entertainment and intellectual property transactions. As a law student, Moore contributed to human rights reports related to domestic and international human rights issues, including, but not limited to racial inequality in Brazil, the human right to sanitation in Lowndes County, Alabama, USA; and the human right to remedy for indigenous Black women affected by racialized gender violence in Papua New Guinea. While studying abroad at the University of Amsterdam, Moore wrote a master thesis exploring the intersections between international law and reparatory justice for the trans-Atlantic slave trade, chattel slavery, and their legacies. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia Law School in New York City, a Master of Laws degree in International Criminal Law from the University of Amsterdam, and a Bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Moore was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon.
Keynote Speaker
Kellie Farrish, (she/her)
Genealogist & AB3121 Advisory Participant
Professional genealogist and active advisory participant concerning reparations eligibility based on race or lineage for California’s AB3121 Reparation Task Force. Kellie spent 15 years helping African-American families trace their ancestry. She also facilitates workshops on transforming race narratives and dismantling systems of racial inequality. Prior to Kellie’s work in training and genealogy, she worked for 20 years in the banking and finance sector for major US institutions.
Session Descriptions
Pre-conference Session
Reparations 101: From 40 Acres and a Mule to H.R. 40
February 23, 2023
12:00pm - 1:15pm PST
This session was intended for those new to Black reparations and interested in learning more, a brief overview of the struggle for Black reparations in the U.S. was provided.
Facilitators:
David Dixon, Goldman School of Public Policy MPA Graduate Student, U.C. Berkeley
Erika Weissinger, Ph.D., U.C. Berkeley
Learning for reparations work
California Reparations Panel
February 24, 2023
9:15am -10:30am PST page 25
This panel discussed the work of the AB 3121 Reparations Taskforce and gave an outreach partner overview, as well as provided Bay Area county and municipal reparations presentations, followed by audience Q&A.
Facilitated by Supervisor Nate Miley, District 4, Alameda County Board of Supervisors, President
Panelists:
Chris Lodgson, Coalition For A Just and Equitable California
Dr. Kerby Lynch, Ceres Policy Research / #OperationReparations707
Terrance Davis, Vallejo Assistant City Manager
Regina Youngblood, Hayward Assistant City Manager
Jenny Chacon, Hayward Equity and Inclusion Officer
Demnlus Johnson III, Richmond City Council
Tinisch Hollins, Vice Chair, San Francisco African American Reparations Advisory Committee
Challenges in Reparations Work
Trends in Federal, State, and Local Reparations Policies
February 24, 2023
10:45am - 12:00pm PST
This panel discussed recent trends and examples of reparations policies at the federal, state, and local levels, explored a range of material and symbolic reparations efforts at all levels of government, and how these different initiatives shape the national reparations landscape.
Facilitators:
Katie Sandson, Program Director, Racial Redress and Reparations Lab
Malcolm Clarke, Elizabeth Zitrin Justice Fellow, Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project at Northeastern University School of Law (Boston Campus)
Linda Mann, co-founder, African American Redress Network
Strategies for Reparations Work
Role of Philanthropy in the Reparations Movement
February 24, 2023
1:45pm - 2:45pm PST
This panel explored the role philanthropy can play in supporting the reparations movement. For centuries, Black communities have been exploited to build the wealth that makes philanthropic endowments possible. The following questions were discussed: What steps can philanthropy take to support the movement for Black reparations? What are the challenges and opportunities at the intersection of philanthropy and reparations?
Facilitated by Darcelle Lahr, Mills College at Northeastern University Professor of Practice, Elfenworks Lecturer in Leadership & Ethics, Black Reparations Project Co-Chair
Panelists:
Katherine Ponce, Senior Research Associate for Special Projects, National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy
Pat Clark, Chief Program Officer, Fund for Nonviolence
Jennie Goldfarb, Director of Operations & Strategic Engagement, Liberation Ventures
Joy and Wellness in Reparations Work
February 24, 2023
3:00pm - 4:15pm PST
This session provided an interactive moment to engage in gentle movement, breathwork, and meditation, followed by collective group discussion about how to include space for joy and wellness in Black Reparations work.
Facilitated by Ciera B. Lewis, MA, Doctoral Intern, Michigan State University Counseling & Psychiatric Services