On Tuesday, the California Senate gave the go-ahead to landmark legislation that, pending approval by the state assembly, could pave the way for the establishment of an agency to administer and facilitate reparations for descendants of chattel slaves. The bill also sanctions compensation for Black families who were unjustly dispossessed of their lands by the state’s utilization of eminent domain power. Details on the bill show that the proposed California American Freedmen Affairs Agency will be in charge of administering this program.
Furthermore, the text of S.B. 1403 reveals that the bill will not allocate state funds for reparations; instead, it will concentrate on laying down the administrative groundwork for such a program. Meanwhile, another bill, S.B. 1050, would tackle restitutions for “racially motivated uses” of eminent domain.
The reparation efforts and policies will be guided by the suggestions made by the 2020 task force that was instituted to deliberate and formulate strategies aimed at rectifying the enduring impacts of slavery on African Americans. The proposed agency will be responsible for the implementation of this process, including the verification of the genealogical research that claimants would be required to confirm their eligibility for benefits.
State Senator Steven Bradford, who introduced the bill, spoke about the state’s obligation to right the “wrongs of slavery,” and address the systemic racial injustices that continued well past the end of slavery.
Although California was considered a “free state,” a deeper review reveals that the state participated in enforcing fugitive slave laws by sending escaped slaves across state lines. Furthermore, during the 1850s and 1860s, over 2,000 slaves were brought into the state to work in the gold mines, with the state showing either inability or unwillingness to enforce its prohibitions against slavery.
Despite the progress this proposed bill represents, there has been criticism too. Critics argue against the use of tax dollars from citizens statewide to compensate descendants of black families who had their land seized, and disapprove of the creation of an agency before actual reparations have been approved, particularly given the state’s projected multibillion-dollar budget deficit.
Nevertheless, these steps taken by California’s senate are the most substantial towards reparations any US state has ventured, and follow a recent law passed in New York that established a committee to investigate remedies for the institution of slavery and its aftermath.