The Slavery Reparations Debate

Paper Summary:

This paper is an imaginary debate regarding the Congressional Slave Reparations Bill, HR 40 IH 107th Congress, 1st Session, H.R. 40, introduced on January 3, 2001 to acknowledge the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery in the United States between 1619 and 1865. For example the imaginary person in favor of reparations argues that it is the way we (the African-Americans) are treated in modern America that continues the slave mentality and has forced so many of them to become criminals or to drop out of society. On the other hand, the imaginary person in against reparations argues that frustration is the basis for our current troubled society; and, even if there is some polarized relationship between whites and blacks, this idea of a Slavery Reparations Bill makes that gulf even wider and deeper. The paper continues in this manner giving a statement pro and a statement against as if it were a debate.

From the Paper:

"PRO4: Of course it is. African-Americans DESERVE Compensation for past and present injustice. You don't see whites dragged down for miles on a Texas road! Blacks are the majority of prisoners on death row. Rodney King wouldn't have been beaten by the cops if he were white. SAT tests to get into colleges are still skewed toward white middle class students.
CON4: So, you're using today's prejudices to squeeze money out of the government? Where are all the upper- and middle class black professionals who run away from the inner cities as soon as they have good paying jobs? Why aren't they spearheading this Reparations drive? But, more to the point - what about Native Americans and the Chinese brought over to build the railroads as slave labor? Why limit compensation for slavery to African-Americans?
PRO5: Because we were the only ones dragged from out homelands and shipped over to America. That's a historical fact."

More papers on The Slavery Reparations Debate:

• Persuasive Essay # 147492 : "The Case for Slavery Reparations for African Americans"
• Research Paper # 67250 : "Reparations for Slavery"
• Essay # 29759 : "Reparations"

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