New York City’s government is reportedly considering forming a reparations committee, similar to the one created by California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). The city is also considering a number of other ‘anti-racist’ measures, including the possibility of tearing down a statue of former President George Washington.
The New York City Council weighed this week whether or not to create a reparations task force to “consider the impact of slavery and past injustices for African Americans in New York City and reparations for such injustices.”
The city is also considering a proposal to remove statues of individuals who “owned enslaved persons or directly benefited economically from slavery or who participated in systemic crimes against indigenous peoples or other crimes against humanity.”
Statues of individuals who owned slaves or were involved with exploration include Washington, former New York colonial Gov. Peter Stuyvesant and Christopher Columbus.
The city could decide whether to remove the offending statues or to place an “explanatory plaque” next to it.
The New York City Council is considering creating a reparations task force and removing statues of historical figures using the limited funds at its disposal as the council and much of the city's agencies face significant budget cuts.https://t.co/OB8M2aP6P8
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) September 19, 2023
The city’s action comes months after New York State legislators passed a bill creating a separate reparations committee.
Each of these considerations also comes as New York City’s budget is under considerable pressure due to an influx of more than 100,000 migrants. Mayor Eric Adams (D) recently announced a 5% cut to city agencies.
New York’s reparations consideration follows a similar path taken by California. The California Reparations Task Force issued a more than 1,100-page report outlining possible actions the state could take. The panel considered a number of factors intended to give a survey of the impact of factors impacting the Golden State’s Black population.
According to the group, the exact value of potential reparations was left unsaid. However, totaling up the perceived discrimination faced by the state’s Black residents, an average payment of about $1 million per person is plausible.
Factors weighed by the committee included housing issues, mass incarcerations, drug arrest and more. The report was forwarded to the California state legislature, which has taken no firm action since receiving it.
