Should reparations be paid to African-Americans?

In late 2016, Georgetown University made headlines for being one of the first major American universities to publicly acknowledge and apologize for the debt its institution owes to slavery. Georgetown College owned slave plantations in Maryland during its founding years and sold over two hundred slaves to pay off a massive debt in 1838. This action spurred a conversation that comes up again and again throughout history: what, if anything, are African-American owed for the era of slavery?

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https://youtu.be/cvYVLbKMSS8

Who Gains And Who's Left Out Of Georgetown's Reparations Plan

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Additional resources to think about

Georgetown University tries to make amends for profiting from slavery
Georgetown University is taking an unprecedented step to respond to and apologize for its ties to slavery. The university will give special preference to applicants who are descendants of Georgetown’s slaves, plans to rename a building in honor of one of the slaves and will create an institute to study slavery.

Shackled Legacy
History shows slavery helped build many U.S. colleges and universities.

Reparations For Foundational Black Americans: Racial Justice | TEDxYouth
Student presenter Amir El argues that before we are able to take collective action against America’s systemic racism, we must first create economic equality for Foundational Black Americans by providing reparations.

Ta-Nehisi Coates Makes the Case For Reparations
WNPR's John Dankosky spoke with Ta-Nehisi Coates at Immanuel Congregational Church in Hartford while Coates was in town to receive the 2015 Stowe Prize for writing to advance social justice.

How Reparations for Slavery Became A 2020 Campaign Issue
This article The New York Times details the history and current debate over reparations for slavery.

California May Consider 'Historical Injustice' When Allocating COVID-19 Vaccine
As the United States begins the rollout of the coronavirus vaccines, one state is looking to right historical wrongs by prioritizing Indigenous communities.

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Who created this message?

What kind of “text” is it?
How similar or different is it to others of the same genre?
What are the various elements (building blocks) that make up the whole?

What creative techniques are used to attract my attention?

What do you notice (about the way the message is constructed)?
What’s the emotional appeal?
What makes it seem “real?”
What's the emotional appeal? Persuasive devices used?

How might different people understand this message differently from me?

How many other interpretations could there be?
How could we hear about them?
How can you explain the different responses?

What lifestyles, values, and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?

What type of person is the reader/watcher/listener invited to identify with?
What ideas or perspectives are left out?
How would you find what’s missing?
What judgments or statements are made about how we treat other people?

Why is this message being sent?

What's being sold in this message? What's being told?
Who is served by or benefits from the message
– the public?
– private interests?
– individuals?
– institutions?

5 Key Questions of Media Literacy used with permission from the Center for Media Literacy.
Copyright 2002-2021, Center for Media Literacy, www.medialit.com

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