Democratic Rep. Summer Lee from Pennsylvania is set to bring forward the Reparations Now resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives. Lee’s resolution proposes that the federal government allocate trillions of dollars for reparations, pointing to the historical impacts of U.S. slavery, segregation-era laws and other systemic racial injustices as the basis for this funding.
The resolution follows similar efforts, including Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s, D-Mass., February bill proposing a federal commission to study slavery’s legacy and develop reparations proposals. At a Capitol Hill event focused on the urgency of reparative justice, Lee emphasized that those advocating for equity must lead the efforts, particularly in response to efforts by political opponents to undo diversity initiatives.
This legislative effort highlights growing initiatives by Democrats across the country to confront systemic racial inequalities and endorses reparations as both an ethical and legal responsibility of Americans.
