California Gov. Gavin Newsom State of the State 2021 speech at Dodger Stadium.
(Photo: Governor Newsom Official Facebook Page)
‘This Task Force is playing with fire and they know it’
By Evan Symon,
Evan Symon is the Senior Editor for the California Globe. Prior to the Globe, he reported for the Pasadena Independent, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and was head of the Personal Experiences section at Cracked. He can be reached at evan@californiaglobe.com
‘This Task Force is playing with fire and they know it’
By Evan Symon,
December 2, 2022
The California Reparations Task Force gave their first estimation on possible reparations for African-Americans in California on Thursday, coming to an estimated figure of $569 billion of reparations based on past housing discrimination practices in California.
The Task Force was first put together in late 2020 following Gov. Gavin Newsom signing AB 3121 to establish it. They are currently looking for what possible reparations, monetary or otherwise, to recommend to give to African-Americans living in California for past discriminatory practices and slavery, despite the latter not occurring in California following statehood in 1850. While initially encompassing all people of African descent, the group of those qualified to receive reparations was significantly narrowed in March when the task force voted to limit the possible reparations only to those who are an African American descendant of an enslaved person or free Black person living in the US prior to the end of the 19th century.
In June the Task Force’s first report came out, giving a recommendation of reparations, likely in the form of home buying assistance, free college tuition, and business grants. However, one of the many criticisms against the report was that not estimated monetary figure was attached, with many worried about how high it could be. On Thursday, first estimates on possible reparations were released.
According to the Task Force, qualified black residents, who make up slightly less than 7% of the state’s population, would be eligible to receive $223,200 each, or roughly $569 billion in total. The figure comes from the “housing wealth gap,” or discrimination policies in place between 1933 and 1977 that cost black residents an estimate $5,074 per year. If the figures stay the same in the final report and are approved, the reparations given out would be the most the country has seen since the 1860’s.
“We are looking at reparations on a scale that is the largest since Reconstruction,” noted UC Berkeley Professor and Task Force member Jovan Scott Lewis on Thursday.
$569 billion in possible reparations
Despite the release of an estimated figure on Thursday, reparations are still far from a done deal and remain unlikely to pass in California. The Task Force is due to release the final report, complete with final recommended figures, in June 2023. This would also include how payments would be given out, with housing grants, college tuition, and direct cash payments, amongst other types, being considered. Following that, the California Legislature would then decide on what, if anything, they could do.
Such action would likely come in the form of a bill, which would need approval from both houses and the Governor.. Even if it makes it past those, the bill would then likely have to contend with lawsuits and ballot measures that could weaken, or outright dismiss, any reparations at all.
“This Task Force is playing with fire and they know it,” explained legal adviser Richard Weaver to the Globe on Thursday. “I mean, $569 billion. Somehow, if that is passed through and the Governor signs it, there will be dozens of lawsuits filed before the ink is even dry. There will be groups ready to go with petitions. I can tell you right now, as the Task Force has been gathering evidence for reparations, many groups out there have been gathering evidence against it either totally, or just against any direct cash payments.”
“We’ve been wanting possible estimates on this for awhile, but no one really expected the Task Force to have the gall to say this amount. Both sides, for and against, were just kind of stunned with the estimated amount. It’s that ridiculous.”
The Task Force is due to give their final reparations recommendations by June of 2023, with the Task Force then dissolving in December 2023. A bill hoping to extend the Task Force into 2024 was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom earlier this year.
The California Reparations Task Force gave their first estimation on possible reparations for African-Americans in California on Thursday, coming to an estimated figure of $569 billion of reparations based on past housing discrimination practices in California.
The Task Force was first put together in late 2020 following Gov. Gavin Newsom signing AB 3121 to establish it. They are currently looking for what possible reparations, monetary or otherwise, to recommend to give to African-Americans living in California for past discriminatory practices and slavery, despite the latter not occurring in California following statehood in 1850. While initially encompassing all people of African descent, the group of those qualified to receive reparations was significantly narrowed in March when the task force voted to limit the possible reparations only to those who are an African American descendant of an enslaved person or free Black person living in the US prior to the end of the 19th century.
In June the Task Force’s first report came out, giving a recommendation of reparations, likely in the form of home buying assistance, free college tuition, and business grants. However, one of the many criticisms against the report was that not estimated monetary figure was attached, with many worried about how high it could be. On Thursday, first estimates on possible reparations were released.
According to the Task Force, qualified black residents, who make up slightly less than 7% of the state’s population, would be eligible to receive $223,200 each, or roughly $569 billion in total. The figure comes from the “housing wealth gap,” or discrimination policies in place between 1933 and 1977 that cost black residents an estimate $5,074 per year. If the figures stay the same in the final report and are approved, the reparations given out would be the most the country has seen since the 1860’s.
“We are looking at reparations on a scale that is the largest since Reconstruction,” noted UC Berkeley Professor and Task Force member Jovan Scott Lewis on Thursday.
$569 billion in possible reparations
Despite the release of an estimated figure on Thursday, reparations are still far from a done deal and remain unlikely to pass in California. The Task Force is due to release the final report, complete with final recommended figures, in June 2023. This would also include how payments would be given out, with housing grants, college tuition, and direct cash payments, amongst other types, being considered. Following that, the California Legislature would then decide on what, if anything, they could do.
Such action would likely come in the form of a bill, which would need approval from both houses and the Governor.. Even if it makes it past those, the bill would then likely have to contend with lawsuits and ballot measures that could weaken, or outright dismiss, any reparations at all.
“This Task Force is playing with fire and they know it,” explained legal adviser Richard Weaver to the Globe on Thursday. “I mean, $569 billion. Somehow, if that is passed through and the Governor signs it, there will be dozens of lawsuits filed before the ink is even dry. There will be groups ready to go with petitions. I can tell you right now, as the Task Force has been gathering evidence for reparations, many groups out there have been gathering evidence against it either totally, or just against any direct cash payments.”
“We’ve been wanting possible estimates on this for awhile, but no one really expected the Task Force to have the gall to say this amount. Both sides, for and against, were just kind of stunned with the estimated amount. It’s that ridiculous.”
The Task Force is due to give their final reparations recommendations by June of 2023, with the Task Force then dissolving in December 2023. A bill hoping to extend the Task Force into 2024 was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom earlier this year.
Evan Symon is the Senior Editor for the California Globe. Prior to the Globe, he reported for the Pasadena Independent, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and was head of the Personal Experiences section at Cracked. He can be reached at evan@californiaglobe.com
IT WAS BRITISH SLAVERS, THEY SHOULD PAY TOO
'America is a racist country':
Who's Who of.png)
Newsom's nine-person 'radical' reparations board that believes capitalism to be racist and wants to pay EVERY African American slave descendant $223k
In the past eight months the taskforce has spent time traveling the West Coast to learn about the effect of the policies on everyone
2024 Presidential hopeful Gavin Newsom signed off the legislation in 2020 for the largest reparation effort in recent history
Members of the panel are calling for the federal government to take on their concerns – a move that could cost billions to fulfill
Kamilah Moore, Chair
Chair of the group, which was created after 2024 hopeful Newsom signed legislation in 2020, Kamilah Moore has said she plans to be as 'radical as possible' when it comes to her role
Entertainment lawyer Kamilah Moore turned her hand to the taskforce when it was first launched after previously working in Los Angeles.
The 30-year-old previously studied at the University of Amsterdam, where she took a series of courses on international criminal law and wrote a thesis on global reparatory justice for the transatlantic slave trade, the institution of slavery, and their legacies.
While she 'probably' wouldn't recommend that the 'police be abolished' in California, Moore added: 'That doesn't mean that I'm not going to try to invite an expert to come and provide testimony.'
Moore was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon.
During her time studying human rights and international law she traveled to Papua New Guinea and helped them with there reparation from a Canadian-owned gold mining corporation.
Dr Amos C Brown, Vice Chair
Dr Brown worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr and has previously said his great-great-grandfather was born enslaved
Civil rights leader Dr Amos Brown studied under Martin Luther King Jr, and was arrested during a sit-in in 1961 to protest segregation in the south.
He told the San Francisco Chronicle that 'America is a racist country' and he knows that, as well as explaining his great-great-grandfather was born enslaved in 1821.
It is unclear if the recommendations by the group will be introduced nationally, but if so it could mean that Dr Brown may be one of the recipients of the $223k the group recommended.
Dr Brown also added that you need the 'right kind of police', and that 'the police need to understand that to wear that badge is not license for you to beat up on human beings.'
Reginald Jones-Sawyer
Reginal Jones-Sawyer compared slavery in the past to the prison system in America currently, claiming that it 'might just be another form of slavery'
Assemblymember Reginald Jones-Sawyer represents the 59th Assembly District, including the communities of Huntington Park, Florence-Firestone, Walnut Park, South Los Angeles, and Exposition Park.
He was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon.
Discussing the repartition group, he told ABC: 'Today we don't treat African Americans as slaves, but when you look at the prison system, you go, 'Oh, I now can connect the dots that the prison industrial system might just be another form of slavery'.'
Jones-Sawyer was inspired to stand up for civil rights after his uncle became one of the first groups of black students who integrated into an all-white high school in Arkansas.
Dr Jovan Scott Lewis
Jovan Scott Lewis is calling for a 'robust' plan with 'plenty' of options and previously branded capitalism as racist
Dr Jovan Scott Lewis is an Economic Anthropologist and Geographer who researches reparations, the political economy of inequality and race in the United States and the Caribbean.
He is an Associate Professor and the Chair of the Department of Geography at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught since 2015.
Lewis earned Doctor of Philosophy and Master of Science degrees in Anthropology from the London School of Economics and was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Speaking to the New York Times, Lewis said of the groups: 'We are looking at reparations on a scale that is the largest since Reconstruction. That is why we must put forward a robust plan, with plenty of options.
In a paper discussing racial capitalism in the post-emancipation Caribbean, Lewis also claimed that the 'structural definition of Caribbean identity can be understood as one defined by racial capitalism's instrument of labor' – essentially branding capitalism as racist.
Senator Steven Bradford
California State Senator Steven Bradford, representing Senate District 35, is concerned that the asks of the team might be a 'bridge too far' even for his Democrat colleagues
Senator Steven Bradford, representing the 35th District, and has signed 43 bills signed into law, and he is currently the chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee, as well as the Chair of the California Legislative black Caucus
Bradford is also outspoken on Criminal Justice Reform, Diversity and Inclusion, empowering underserved communities and bringing equity to the Cannabis industry.
He explained that he felt concerned after some of his colleagues, and fellow Democrats, feels that reparations may be a 'bridge too far'.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times he said: 'I've often said, if you can inherit generational wealth, you can inherit generational debt and the state of California, as well as the United States, owes a debt to African Americans who are descendants of slavery and helped build this country.'
Sn Bradford was appointed as a member of the Reparation Task Force by President pro Tempore of the Senate Toni Atkins.
Dr Cheryl Grills
Dr. Cheryl Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University for 34 years was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom
Dr. Cheryl Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University for 34 years was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Speaking to ABC she said: ‘These are very difficult and trying times for people of African ancestry in this country, and in fact, in the world.
‘We black folks have been essentially dealing with centuries of racial oppression. Our souls, our bodies, our minds are under duress. We are in a broken social system in society.
‘So, essentially what we're dealing with is a situation that is not righteous, it's not just.
‘It has no empathy or compassion for the humanity of black people, and in the midst of yet another assault, a remi
Monica Montgomery Steppe
Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Spelman College and a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law.
Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe represents the Fourth Council District in the City of San Diego and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Spelman College and a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law.
Speaking about her appointment last year, she said: ‘This is an important first step to dismantle systemic racism and the barriers that African Americans have faced in this country since its beginning, and I look forward to the work of the task force.’
Steppe was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by President pro Tempore of the Senate Toni Atkins.
Donald K Tamaki
Tamaki is the co-founder of StopRepeatingHistory.Org, a campaign focused on drawing parallels between the round-up of Japanese Americans during World War II
Lawyer Donald Tamaki is known for his historic work serving on the pro bono legal team that reopened the landmark Supreme Court case of Korematsu v. the United States.
He helped to overturn Fred Korematsu’s conviction for refusing incarceration during the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II and providing a key legal foundation in the decades-long Japanese American Redress Movement.
Tamaki is the co-founder of StopRepeatingHistory.Org, a campaign focused on drawing parallels between the round-up of Japanese Americans during World War II and the targeting of minority groups based on race or religion.
He was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
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The nine-person group is still in discussions over a further 12 issues that could see African Americans given more compensation
In the past eight months the taskforce has spent time traveling the West Coast to learn about the effect of the policies on everyone
2024 Presidential hopeful Gavin Newsom signed off the legislation in 2020 for the largest reparation effort in recent history
Members of the panel are calling for the federal government to take on their concerns – a move that could cost billions to fulfill
FULL FAUX OUTRAGE FROM A TORY BRIT TABLOID
By EMMA JAMES FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 2 December 2022
Members of California Governor Gavin Newsom's reparation committee have slammed America as a 'racist country' while others have hit out against 'white superiority.'
Kamilah Moore - the chair of the group - which was created after 2024 hopeful Newsom signed legislation in 2020, has said she plans to be as 'radical as possible' when it comes to her role.
The nine-person group believes that black Americans should receive the money for 'enduring the economic effects' of racism and slavery – after initially making the suggestions in California.
They are now urging the federal government to pay every African American in the US at least $223,000 for 'housing discrimination' - while continuing to probe other areas for compensation.
A taskforce set up by California Gov. Gavin Newsom is urging the federal government to pay every African American in the US at least $223k for 'housing discrimination' - while continuing to probe other areas for compensation
California is the first state to require agencies to present a separate demographic category for descendants of enslaved people.
On Thursday, the New York Times reported that the taskforce has spent months traveling across the West coast to learn about the effect of the policies.
In a March 2022 report, those eligible for the reparations would have to be descendants of enslaved African Americans or of a 'free black person living in the United States prior to the end of the 19th century.
They argue that the money is for housing discrimination practices utilized from 1933 to 1977 – and have 12 more categories to consider.
Members of the panel are calling for the federal government to take on their concerns – a move that could cost billions to fulfill.
DailyMail.com has a closer look at those making the decisions on Newsom's committee, which is chaired by a former entertainment lawyer from Los Angeles.
By EMMA JAMES FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 2 December 2022
Members of California Governor Gavin Newsom's reparation committee have slammed America as a 'racist country' while others have hit out against 'white superiority.'
Kamilah Moore - the chair of the group - which was created after 2024 hopeful Newsom signed legislation in 2020, has said she plans to be as 'radical as possible' when it comes to her role.
The nine-person group believes that black Americans should receive the money for 'enduring the economic effects' of racism and slavery – after initially making the suggestions in California.
They are now urging the federal government to pay every African American in the US at least $223,000 for 'housing discrimination' - while continuing to probe other areas for compensation.
A taskforce set up by California Gov. Gavin Newsom is urging the federal government to pay every African American in the US at least $223k for 'housing discrimination' - while continuing to probe other areas for compensation
California is the first state to require agencies to present a separate demographic category for descendants of enslaved people.
On Thursday, the New York Times reported that the taskforce has spent months traveling across the West coast to learn about the effect of the policies.
In a March 2022 report, those eligible for the reparations would have to be descendants of enslaved African Americans or of a 'free black person living in the United States prior to the end of the 19th century.
They argue that the money is for housing discrimination practices utilized from 1933 to 1977 – and have 12 more categories to consider.
Members of the panel are calling for the federal government to take on their concerns – a move that could cost billions to fulfill.
DailyMail.com has a closer look at those making the decisions on Newsom's committee, which is chaired by a former entertainment lawyer from Los Angeles.
Kamilah Moore, Chair
Chair of the group, which was created after 2024 hopeful Newsom signed legislation in 2020, Kamilah Moore has said she plans to be as 'radical as possible' when it comes to her role
Entertainment lawyer Kamilah Moore turned her hand to the taskforce when it was first launched after previously working in Los Angeles.
The 30-year-old previously studied at the University of Amsterdam, where she took a series of courses on international criminal law and wrote a thesis on global reparatory justice for the transatlantic slave trade, the institution of slavery, and their legacies.
While she 'probably' wouldn't recommend that the 'police be abolished' in California, Moore added: 'That doesn't mean that I'm not going to try to invite an expert to come and provide testimony.'
Moore was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon.
During her time studying human rights and international law she traveled to Papua New Guinea and helped them with there reparation from a Canadian-owned gold mining corporation.
Dr Amos C Brown, Vice Chair
Dr Brown worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr and has previously said his great-great-grandfather was born enslaved
Civil rights leader Dr Amos Brown studied under Martin Luther King Jr, and was arrested during a sit-in in 1961 to protest segregation in the south.
He told the San Francisco Chronicle that 'America is a racist country' and he knows that, as well as explaining his great-great-grandfather was born enslaved in 1821.
It is unclear if the recommendations by the group will be introduced nationally, but if so it could mean that Dr Brown may be one of the recipients of the $223k the group recommended.
Dr Brown also added that you need the 'right kind of police', and that 'the police need to understand that to wear that badge is not license for you to beat up on human beings.'
Reginald Jones-Sawyer
Reginal Jones-Sawyer compared slavery in the past to the prison system in America currently, claiming that it 'might just be another form of slavery'
Assemblymember Reginald Jones-Sawyer represents the 59th Assembly District, including the communities of Huntington Park, Florence-Firestone, Walnut Park, South Los Angeles, and Exposition Park.
He was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon.
Discussing the repartition group, he told ABC: 'Today we don't treat African Americans as slaves, but when you look at the prison system, you go, 'Oh, I now can connect the dots that the prison industrial system might just be another form of slavery'.'
Jones-Sawyer was inspired to stand up for civil rights after his uncle became one of the first groups of black students who integrated into an all-white high school in Arkansas.
Dr Jovan Scott Lewis
Jovan Scott Lewis is calling for a 'robust' plan with 'plenty' of options and previously branded capitalism as racist
Dr Jovan Scott Lewis is an Economic Anthropologist and Geographer who researches reparations, the political economy of inequality and race in the United States and the Caribbean.
He is an Associate Professor and the Chair of the Department of Geography at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught since 2015.
Lewis earned Doctor of Philosophy and Master of Science degrees in Anthropology from the London School of Economics and was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Speaking to the New York Times, Lewis said of the groups: 'We are looking at reparations on a scale that is the largest since Reconstruction. That is why we must put forward a robust plan, with plenty of options.
In a paper discussing racial capitalism in the post-emancipation Caribbean, Lewis also claimed that the 'structural definition of Caribbean identity can be understood as one defined by racial capitalism's instrument of labor' – essentially branding capitalism as racist.
Senator Steven Bradford
California State Senator Steven Bradford, representing Senate District 35, is concerned that the asks of the team might be a 'bridge too far' even for his Democrat colleagues
Senator Steven Bradford, representing the 35th District, and has signed 43 bills signed into law, and he is currently the chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee, as well as the Chair of the California Legislative black Caucus
Bradford is also outspoken on Criminal Justice Reform, Diversity and Inclusion, empowering underserved communities and bringing equity to the Cannabis industry.
He explained that he felt concerned after some of his colleagues, and fellow Democrats, feels that reparations may be a 'bridge too far'.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times he said: 'I've often said, if you can inherit generational wealth, you can inherit generational debt and the state of California, as well as the United States, owes a debt to African Americans who are descendants of slavery and helped build this country.'
Sn Bradford was appointed as a member of the Reparation Task Force by President pro Tempore of the Senate Toni Atkins.
Dr Cheryl Grills
Dr. Cheryl Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University for 34 years was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom
Dr. Cheryl Grills, a professor of psychology at Loyola Marymount University for 34 years was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Speaking to ABC she said: ‘These are very difficult and trying times for people of African ancestry in this country, and in fact, in the world.
‘We black folks have been essentially dealing with centuries of racial oppression. Our souls, our bodies, our minds are under duress. We are in a broken social system in society.
‘So, essentially what we're dealing with is a situation that is not righteous, it's not just.
‘It has no empathy or compassion for the humanity of black people, and in the midst of yet another assault, a remi
Dr Lisa Holder
Lisa Holder periodically teaches the Civil Rights and Police Accountability Clinic at UCLA Law School and serves as a legislative consultant on institutional bias elimination
Dr Holder has been Dubbed a ‘Super Lawyer’ by Los Angeles Magazine for four years running, and is a nationally recognised and award winning trial attorney.
She periodically teaches the Civil Rights and Police Accountability Clinic at UCLA Law School and serves as a legislative consultant on institutional bias elimination.
Holder told the LA Times: ‘Hearing from real black people who are catching hell day to day is what is most important and that is one of the reasons why we are pushing for a community engagement process.’
After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree at Wesleyan University, Holder graduated from New York University School of Law as a distinguished Root-Tilden Scholar.
Lisa Holder periodically teaches the Civil Rights and Police Accountability Clinic at UCLA Law School and serves as a legislative consultant on institutional bias elimination
Dr Holder has been Dubbed a ‘Super Lawyer’ by Los Angeles Magazine for four years running, and is a nationally recognised and award winning trial attorney.
She periodically teaches the Civil Rights and Police Accountability Clinic at UCLA Law School and serves as a legislative consultant on institutional bias elimination.
Holder told the LA Times: ‘Hearing from real black people who are catching hell day to day is what is most important and that is one of the reasons why we are pushing for a community engagement process.’
After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree at Wesleyan University, Holder graduated from New York University School of Law as a distinguished Root-Tilden Scholar.
Monica Montgomery Steppe
Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Spelman College and a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law.
Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe represents the Fourth Council District in the City of San Diego and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Spelman College and a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law.
Speaking about her appointment last year, she said: ‘This is an important first step to dismantle systemic racism and the barriers that African Americans have faced in this country since its beginning, and I look forward to the work of the task force.’
Steppe was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by President pro Tempore of the Senate Toni Atkins.
Donald K Tamaki
Tamaki is the co-founder of StopRepeatingHistory.Org, a campaign focused on drawing parallels between the round-up of Japanese Americans during World War II
Lawyer Donald Tamaki is known for his historic work serving on the pro bono legal team that reopened the landmark Supreme Court case of Korematsu v. the United States.
He helped to overturn Fred Korematsu’s conviction for refusing incarceration during the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II and providing a key legal foundation in the decades-long Japanese American Redress Movement.
Tamaki is the co-founder of StopRepeatingHistory.Org, a campaign focused on drawing parallels between the round-up of Japanese Americans during World War II and the targeting of minority groups based on race or religion.
He was appointed to the Reparations Task Force by Governor Gavin Newsom.
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