Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Reparations were not attempted after the Civil War and Democrats were not in power after the Civil War. Republican were in power.
In regards to the CRM there are stilll people alive to day who were harmed and who have sought restitution and who have been denied. The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Alabama of the "four little girls" who were killed - there actually were five little girls critically injured. One of them survived. She is a sister of one who died. She lives in poverty today and has long standing health effects of being bombed. She suffered a brain injury and blindness. The State of Alabama refused to let her get recompense for her injuries from their state fund for victims of crimes.
Other blacks in the south had their homes bombed. Many of these people are still alive.
Someone should tell this to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. Their pocket money could probably triple her lifestyle.
Just like the suggestion that Obama could've gifted his brother in Kenya a mere $20, which would have been a year's pay for him. There's nothing to suggest the gift was ever made, since the man still lives in a grass hut.
"...Some white Americans like to dismiss slavery and past injustices against blacks as something of the distant past and therefore they should move on. Contrary to this, white supremacists don't seem like they want to move on from the Confederacy era. They also use the excuse that because slavery happened before they were born they are not responsible for the problems that blacks experience today.
For starters, the "Daily Kos"?
Really?
Why not just link Pravda or some other socialist rag.
As to the responsibility of slavery, many people think only in terms of black and white (pun intended).
So lets cover a few basics, because I do not have time now to go into detail to deconstruct the false narrative the leftist Alinsky types are always pushing.
1) No modern civilized/western society attaches the sins of the father to the son
2) That is especially true of the sins of the great great grandfather on to the great great grandson
3) Not all whites are descendants of slave owners, as a lot of the country had nothing to do with slave ownership
4) Many whites ancestors were not even in America during slavery
I will pose a few question for the crowd who thinks whites must be held accountable today, even though slavery ended 150+ years ago.
Aside from the obvious facts stated above, when is enough, enough?
1) Over 150 years have passed since slavery was ended. How long should our society (white, black, red, brown or yellow) continue to debate this issue?
2) Over a trillion dollars has been spent mainly focused on helping specifically black folks. Again, what figure should we cap it at?
3) Slavery was ended by whites with many of them losing their lives. So how do you separate the great great grandsons and granddaughters of those men who fought and died to free the slaves, from those who owned them?
I'm a huge fan of history, and little that you have stated here is new information. As terrible as the history is, that doesn't mean the descendants of the victims/survivors of that history are owed anything by the descendants of the other side.
I know very few American Indians who are still complaining about the past. Considering that a portion of my family still lives on reservations, that's saying something.
There are forum and sites out there whereby the Amerindians are constantly complaining about the white man supposedly stealing their land and the so-called genocide of their ancestors. I'm surprised that you don't know about it.
Many Mexicans are still complaining about the same thing and think that they have a right to enter the U.S. at will based on their Amerindian ancestry an that they lost parts of the southwest in a war (which by the way the U.S. paid them for those lands). It's common knowledge.
Reparations were not attempted after the Civil War and Democrats were not in power after the Civil War. Republican were in power.
In regards to the CRM there are stilll people alive to day who were harmed and who have sought restitution and who have been denied. The 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Alabama of the "four little girls" who were killed - there actually were five little girls critically injured. One of them survived. She is a sister of one who died. She lives in poverty today and has long standing health effects of being bombed. She suffered a brain injury and blindness. The State of Alabama refused to let her get recompense for her injuries from their state fund for victims of crimes.
Other blacks in the south had their homes bombed. Many of these people are still alive.
There are forum and sites out there whereby the Amerindians are constantly complaining about the white man supposedly stealing their land and the so-called genocide of their ancestors. I'm surprised that you don't know about it.
Many Mexicans are still complaining about the same thing and think that they have a right to enter the U.S. at will based on their Amerindian ancestry an that they lost parts of the southwest in a war (which by the way the U.S. paid them for those lands). It's common knowledge.
There may be forums and sites. I don't frequent them, however. From first hand experience with friends and relatives who have a whole lot more Indian blood than I do, it's a non issue. I don't claim to speak every American Indian out there, but the ones I know have gotten past the be a long time ago.
You're a history buff, and you claim that reparations were not attempted? Okay then. Brief lesson.
William T. Sherman’s Special Field Order No. 15 confiscated and sectioned off 400,000 acres, specifically “The islands from Charleston, south, the abandoned rice fields along the rivers for thirty miles back from the sea, and the country bordering the St. Johns river, Florida, are reserved and set apart for the settlement of the negroes [sic] now made free by the acts of war and the proclamation of the President of the United States.†This land was to be divided up and given in sections of 40 acres to freed slaves in the south - at the request of the leaders of the black community. Yes, 12 prominent members of the black community, some of whom were born slaves, some of them born free in slave states, and most of whom were ministers, were asked what they thought would be just compensation. Land ownership was their answer.
The phrase "40 acres and a mule" is a reference to this incident, although the mule part was not included in the order and the animals were to be loaned, not given.
So, like it or not, the Republicans did try to do right by the freed slaves. Unfortunately, Andrew Johnson(D) rescinded the order in 1865. He took the land back and gave it back to the original landowners or their descendants.
I am aware of Sherman's order. It was not an act of Congress. It was a military "field order" therefore it had nothing to do with the nation itself providing restitution to formerly enslaved individuals. It also only applied to lands in GA and SC. Black people had been enslaved in all states of the Confederacy and in "border" states of WV, KY, and TN, etc.
Restitution programs can only be fully implemented by an act of Congress and signing off of said act by the Executive branch (i.e. President). There was never one brought forward by our government, no matter the political affiliation. It is one of the reasons why I don't "get" either political side who tries to act like either one of them were better than the other during that era or today.
But will note that the homestead act of 1862 was also advocated to be used to provide formerly enslaved individuals access to free land. Like all other programs that many Americans like to claim are "reparations" for blacks (like social welfare programs) this one was not focused on the formerly enslaved population and the people who benefited from it were primarily white Americans. The fact that blacks were overwhelmingly destitute and illiterate made them not able on a vast scale of taking part in homesteading which required people to travel, settle, work, and produce a product/crop, and pay applicable fees/taxes, within 5 years or the land would be taken away. Most former slaves did not have money to buy equipment to farm their own land nor the wherewithal to run the farm like a business due to their former condition and them being legally required to be ignorant (traditional definition of being without knowledge) by southern states.
Note though, that one of my 3rd great grandfathers actually did have land that was kept in the family via the Homestead Act of 1862. I believe an elderly cousin still has ownership of that land. But he was a free man of color and had land in MI not the south and also had more money than a former slave. I have done research on some black families whose family did successfully maintain their farms received via the Homestead Act, mostly in Arkansas. My spouse's 3rd great grandfather was a Civil War vet and former slave who ran away to join the US Colored Troops and he also got a homestead that stayed in their family until the Great Depression in Arkansas. So some former slaves did benefit from the Homestead Act.
After her story was brought to life after the 50th anniversary there was a fundraising campaign for her. She received quite a few donations. Last I heard some wealthy people had taken care of her medical needs at that time. You reminded me of this with the post.
There is no go fund me for her I don't believe at the moment.
But will also note that oftentimes various wealthy people in the black community along with Americans at large step up and take care of these survivors.
Many are unaware that Harry Belafonte financially supporter MLK's widow and children after he was assassinated. They do not always let these things be known.
Recently the founder of Little Ceasar's - surname Illich, can't remember his first name, pizza passed away (within the past year). He was a white American but he significantly helped Rosa Parks secure a new residence after her home was robbed and she was beaten in the 1990s. I remember when that occurred and knew she had moved, but didn't know that he had paid her moving expenses and rent until after he passed away. Oftentimes these survivors are assisted by anonymous donors.
Last edited by residinghere2007; 08-17-2017 at 09:13 AM..
"...Some white Americans like to dismiss slavery and past injustices against blacks as something of the distant past and therefore they should move on. Contrary to this, white supremacists don't seem like they want to move on from the Confederacy era. They also use the excuse that because slavery happened before they were born they are not responsible for the problems that blacks experience today.
The problem with whites denying responsibility for the sins of their fathers is if they use the same tools their ancestors used (hatred, superiority, racism, and racial discrimination) including the symbolism (historical statues and flags) to antagonize black people, then they are perpetuating the same evil their ancestors did. And because they do this they cannot absolve themselves from not been responsible."
I didn't read the whole article (on a break from work at the moment), but the quotes you added here seem to be saying that IF a white person uses the same tools their ancestors used, THEN they're perpetuating that same evil.
I cannot argue with that.
Neither quote states that whites today still have any responsibility for slavery.
__________________
When in doubt, check it out: FAQ
"...Some white Americans like to dismiss slavery and past injustices against blacks as something of the distant past and therefore they should move on. Contrary to this, white supremacists don't seem like they want to move on from the Confederacy era. They also use the excuse that because slavery happened before they were born they are not responsible for the problems that blacks experience today.
The problem with whites denying responsibility for the sins of their fathers is if they use the same tools their ancestors used (hatred, superiority, racism, and racial discrimination) including the symbolism (historical statues and flags) to antagonize black people, then they are perpetuating the same evil their ancestors did. And because they do this they cannot absolve themselves from not been responsible."
Whenever these discussions come up, I am reminded of the Triangle Trade from my history where 1/3 of that trade route was African Kings and rulers actively participating in and profiting from the transatlantic slave trade.
Then we can get into the fact that there were actually African American slaveholders in this country.
So, will only whites be held responsible or will we share the blame for ALL who were involved?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
