reparations

is a wrongheaded idea in that they would be an excuse for some to say 'we've paid our debt,' and to avoid the much harder work.

I fear that reparations would be an excuse for some to say 'we've paid our debt,' and to avoid the much harder work.'

is at the center of barack obama's policies; his goal is to make Americans pay reparations to serve his goal of creating a new America, a new model, a model that will settle old racial scores through new social justice.

Obama is no dummy. He knows that you would never pass reparations. He knows you would never pass any of this stuff. This is all affirmative action. He also knows we can't afford healthcare. He knows we can't afford cap-and-trade and more stimulus bills, but see, that's assuming that he wants to take care of somebody's health, it's assuming that he wants unemployment numbers the way we all understand unemployment numbers, and instead he wants to take care of the environment. But I don't think those are his goals. That's a nice bonus. His goal is creating a new America, a new model, a model that will settle old racial scores through new social justice.

is at the center of obama's policies. '[his] entire economic program is reparations.

No one who pays any attention to conservative media can honestly deny that this has been the case. The idea that Barack Obama is leading an army of black people coming to exact revenge on whites for past sins has been a staple of conservative rhetoric since the beginning of his presidency. Often, this is framed in terms of reparations for slavery: whatever policy Obama happens to be advocating at the moment, including health-care reform, conservative audiences are told that it is an effort by Obama to take their money and give it to black people to right a historical wrong for which they are blameless. In a 2009 discussion about the stimulus bill, Rush Limbaugh told his listeners, 'Obama's entire economic program is reparations!' 'The president of the United States' We're talking now about a Supreme Court justice' The days of them [racial minorities] not having any power are over, and they are angry. And they want to use their power as a means of retribution. That's what Obama's about, gang. He's angry, he's gon' cut this country down to size, he's gon' make it pay for all its multicultural mistakes that it has made, its mistreatment of minorities. I know exactly what's going on.' And yes, that was a little black dialect Rush threw in there, just to be clear. About the ACA, Limbaugh said, 'This is a civil rights bill, this is reparations, whatever you want to call it.' Or another time: 'I think I've finally figured out why Obama it is pushing so hard on this health care bill. He just wants us to have the same health care and plan that he had in Kenya.'

is more than recompense for past injustices more than a handout, a payoff, hush money, or a reluctant bribe. Rather, it is a national reckoning that would lead to spiritual renewal. Reparations would mean the end of scarfing hot dogs on the fourth of july while denying the facts of our heritage. Reparations would mean the end of yelling 'patriotism' while waving a confederate flag. Reparations would mean a revolution of the American consciousness, a reconciling of our self-image as the great democratizer with the facts of our history.

What I'm talking about is more than recompense for past injustices more than a handout, a payoff, hush money, or a reluctant bribe. What I'm talking about is a national reckoning that would lead to spiritual renewal. Reparations would mean the end of scarfing hot dogs on the Fourth of July while denying the facts of our heritage. Reparations would mean the end of yelling 'patriotism' while waving a Confederate flag. Reparations would mean a revolution of the American consciousness, a reconciling of our self-image as the great democratizer with the facts of our history. Ta-Nehisi Coates

is financial penance for a wrong, deducted from the profit in committing said wrong

is satisfaction that is made for a wrong and deducted from the satisfaction felt in committing it.

is wrongheaded and at this point blacks should just be handing money to themselves.

I'm against reparations. At this point, blacks should just be handing money to themselves.

is not wise because it would only divide the country further making it harder to build the political coalition's required to solve the problems facing black people today.

if we were to pay reparations today we would only divide the country further making it harder to build the political coalition's required to solve the problems facing black people today we would insult many black Americans by putting a price on the suffering of their ancestors and we would turn the relationship between black Americans and white Americans from a coalition into a transaction from a union between citizens into a lawsuit between plaintiffs and defendants

reparations, n.All

reparations