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Slavery, USA towards a law to compensate African Americans

2021-04-15T17:49:16.931Z


First historic step in Congress. And in Texas shock in high school: virtual slave trade on Snapchat (ANSA)


Officially apologize to the African American community for the shameful history of slavery and compensate it for centuries of abuse and discrimination.

A heavy legacy whose consequences are still clearly visible today in a society more than ever crossed by racial tensions.

This is why Congress has taken a historic step forward for a law that restores a sense of justice, by voting for the first time in favor of a study commission.

Its task will be to lay the foundations for a provision that has been awaited since the era of the American Civil War.

At the time, a bold text called for compensation to slaves or their descendants with "40 acres of land and a mule".

But the promise was not kept.

In the course of decades and decades, then, all attempts to bring a law to Congress have failed, due to the opposition of the Republicans (which still lasts today) and of a part of the Democrats.

But now the climate seems to have changed, even compared to the eight years of Barack Obama, the first African American president in history.

Congress is in the hands of Democrats, and Joe Biden's new White House has put the fight against racial injustice at the center of its domestic political agenda.

For this reason, it has included tens and tens of billions of dollars in its 'American Jobs Plan' to be invested within the African American community, for the benefit of farmers, entrepreneurs, students and the most disadvantaged sectors of the population.

But in favor of forms of compensation to the African American community today are all the leaders of the Democratic party, from the speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to the leader of the majority in the Senate Chuck Schumer.

Thus the study commission wanted by the Congress will have to work on a report that indicates in detail all the economic, social and health consequences caused by the years of slavery and those of racial segregation, and inherited up to the present day.

The group will then have to propose legislative actions to address the discrimination that still persists today and the possible forms of compensation.

There are several hypotheses: from cash sums given to families to the granting of zero-interest loans and mortgages, passing through the elimination of the very high university fees paid by students.

The historic vote in Congress, however, falls on the day when news arrives from Texas that causes further anger and shock.

A group of high school students had organized a sort of virtual 'slave trade' on Snapchat, setting a price for each of their African American schoolmates from time to time.

One student was priced '100 bucks' ($ 100 in slang), while another boy was only priced at a dollar: "The price would be better if his hair didn't suck," the chat comment, called 'Slave Trade' and that it had as its symbol an emoji depicting a white policeman pointing a gun at an African American farmer.

The principal punished the group of 15-year-olds, however dismissing the facts as "a cyber bullying incident" and unleashing the anger of many parents who explicitly speak of racial hatred.

From another high school near Chicago comes another shocking video in which a group of students forces an African American football teammate to enter a locker full of bananas: "Come in or I'll break your knees", is heard between the laughter of all.

And America can only question itself. 


Source: ansa

All life articles on 2021-04-15

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