Source: Michael M. Santiago / Getty
L awmakers in New York City are following in the footsteps of American cities, considering reparations to descendants of enslaved people,
On Thursday, City Council members approved legislation to study the city’s significant role in slavery and examine whether descendants of enslaved people should receive reparations, according to AP.
The bills, which still need to be signed by Mayor Eric Adams, would follow the lead of other American cities tackling reparations by instructing the Commission on Racial Equity to come up with solutions to remedy the legacy of slavery, which would include reparations. The legislation would also create a truth and reconciliation process to establish historical facts about slavery in New York.
According to AP, one of the proposals would require the city to install a sign on Wall Street in Manhattan that acknowledges New York’s first slave market, which operated between 1711 and 1762.
“The reparations movement is often misunderstood as merely a call for compensation,” Council Member Farah Louis, told City Council. City Hall also showed support for the new legislation calling it, “another crucial step towards addressing systemic inequities, fostering reconciliation, and creating a more just and equitable future for all New Yorkers.”