Buying Out Slavery In African Americans
Buying Out Slavery Slavery originated from the mother land known by the name of Africa, slavery was in the midst of African communities. These communities held slaves because they were prisoners of war or (pow) for short. Slavery is having ownership over an individual, or group of people. These owners control where the slave or slaves live and work, and often sell or trade amongst other slave owners. This type of slavery is known as chattel slavery, which is a traditional form and is very rare to find because it has been abolished. Slavery has been haunting the world for centuries and has happened to end in 1865. Even though it ended in 1865 the freed slaves still faced complicated situations. Jim crow laws were set and African Americans
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were victimized in the south which led them to move to the north. This was known as the great migration which led millions of people to flood the city’s streets and valleys.
Should the Americans in today’s society get paid for our ancestors’ hardships?
Dervorn Kelly is a scholar from Rappahannock Community College, and he thinks that the descendants from slaves should get reparations because that would mean free education, life insurance, and free financial aid for any school in the US. This idea would be terrible; it would be riots all across the world because people will feel like they are slave descendants too. Another scholar by the name of Donte Williams thinks that African Americans should get reparations because of the long years of suffering. The money could be used to build broken window cities, and the money could be used to further education of the poor. This is not a bad idea but people should think about who the government will tax and who they will not tax. African Americans should not receive reparations from the U.S. government for slavery because people would spend money on useless things, it won’t heal the damaged that was caused for generations and the government wouldn’t know who to …show more content…
tax.
The money from reparations that African Americans would receive will be spent on useless things. Reparations are the making of amends from the wrong one have done by paying money or simply helping the wronged. Recent research shows that African Americans spend more than what they make, don’t know how to invest, and don’t know how to save money. These are red flags. If African Americans get reparations it would be for nothing because they would not invest and not save. Matthew Corbin wrote on The Odyssey, “black people are spending money that they don't have and won't have at the end of the month. This trend of building never ending debt is partially why their poverty numbers are so high.” (1). This proves the never ending cycle that would be bad for reparations.
The spending of reparations can go both ways, good and bad. Does this mean African Americans will live rich but act poor? Matthew Corbin writes in The Odyssey, “As soon as black people get a huge chunk of money or their tax refund it appears that they all flock to the nearest high-end fashion spot to splurge.” (3). Since the tax refunds just came about a month ago the malls were filled and the newest shoes were brought right off the wall. This means that if you get thousands of dollars and blow it within a few weeks, why should anyone get reparations if all they are going to do is splurge on the newest foreign car or on pointless things? He furthered on The Odyssey with, “Many young black people work and spend their money on items that either decrease in value after being bought or are not sustainable. Cars and sneakers are prime examples of such things.” (4). This quote proves that young and sometimes experienced African Americans don’t think before they buy, or they don’t think ahead for the future. Nevertheless, reparations should not be in money form because it would be blown on expensive materials that would have no value in years to come. In conclusion, African Americans will not only spend money on useless things, but the money will not heal the damage from slavery. The damage from slavery lingers through the generations of black oppression and the determination of African Americans to climb to the top. Reparations for this group of people (African Americans) would only stir up some trouble. David Frum wrote on The Atlantic, “If African Americans are due payment for slavery, what will the government do about the Native Americans who lost a whole continent? Also the Mexican-Americans, who were denied their rights to move back to their former country? Or the Japanese Americans, interned during World War II (WWII)? What about the Chinese Americans that was victims of coolie labor and the Oriental Exclusion Acts which prohibited immigration of Chinese laborers?” (1). These groups may grant that they were not abused and mistreated in the same way, but in some way it destroyed each one in a different way.
Furthermore, the talk about damages can go on for decades and not be solved. Alma Carten, professor of social work, wrote on The Conversation, “For blacks descended from slaves, the subject evokes feelings of shame and embarrassment associated with the degradations of slavery. For whites whose ancestry makes them complicit, there are feelings of guilt about a system that is incongruent with the democratic ideals on which this country was founded.” (4). She talks about how whites will have feelings of guilt, and for blacks the feelings of shame and embarrassment. The government would think that money from reparations would heal what has happened in the past. The government might be trying to buy us out. Finally, Alma Carten writes on The Conversation, “Since slavery, the church has been a formidable force for the survival of blacks in an America still grappling with the residual effects of white supremacy.” (1). This means that the effects shifted the damaged community to the church which subsided the effects of oppression. African Americans not only would spend their money on useless things, and the money wouldn’t heal decades of damage but the government would not know who to tax.
The government makes sure every person that lives in the U.S.
files their taxes, when thinking about reparations who would they tax? This question ponders the community and some may say it’s from descendants of slave owners. This would be a huge problem because who are the descendants, and who are the slave descendants. Anyone can claim they’re from a certain blood line. An unknown source from The New York Times website wrote, “Payments will have to come from taxpayers, who have no culpability for those past crimes and little, if any, of the benefit.” (1). This statement could mean more than one thing. One, the proposal for the paying of reparations was aimed for the whites who ancestors were owners of slaves during the slavery period. Two, are these people going to be okay with paying these amounts of money for something they didn’t do? Last but not least, will this settle the race conflict that’s going on or would the world still be the
same.
The taxing of individuals who did not commit these crimes will feel as though they shouldn’t pay a penny, which brings up “taxation without representation”. Taxation without representation happened because of the British taxing the thirteen colonies. They taxed without any representatives, which caused the American Revolution. If this sudden event caused a major war what do you think taxing the descendants of former slave owners will do? The same source from The New York Times website wrote, “Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, and countless others, some famous and others obscure, have echoed the claim based on the wealth stolen from enslaved people and opportunities denied during the years of segregation that followed.” (1). This topic has been amongst many important persons, and they think their people has been stripped of their wealth by the Jim Crow laws. They lost opportunity’s during the segregation period. In conclusion, reparations shouldn’t be payed because they’ll be spent on useless things, it won’t heal the damage, and the government wouldn’t know who to tax. During the post-slavery time, reparations came up more than one time. The talk stirred the community and it was always looked down upon. It would come up then die down again, this would happen over a great period of time. African Americans should not get the money because they wouldn’t know what to do with it; they would simply spend their money on the newest shoes, or the best looking car. The damage that was done could never be restored because of the pain and suffering slaves went through; and African Americans pain and suffering during the Jim Crow era. Buying out slavery is not acceptable for today’s society. The money coming from descendants of slave owners can stir up a lot of trouble. The government would not knowhow to tax and who to tax, making this plan irrelevant. In conclusion, we have to think about these reparations, what could happen in the future and who will it drastically affect.
Reference
1) Who Would Pay for Reparations, and Why? - NYTimes.com. (2014, June 9). Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/06/08/are-reparations-due-to-african-americans/who-would-pay-for-reparations-and-why
2) Corbin, M. (2016, April 5). 5 Reasons Why Black People Are Still Broke. Retrieved from https://www.theodysseyonline.com/5-reasons-black-people-still-broke
3) Carten, A. (2015, July 27). How the legacy of slavery affects the mental health of black Americans today. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/how-the-legacy-of-slavery-affects-the-mental-health-of-black-americans-today-44642
4) Frum, D. (2014, June 3). The Impossibility of Reparations - The Atlantic. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/06/the-impossibility-of-reparations/372041/
5)
were victimized in the south which led them to move to the north. This was known as the great migration which led millions of people to flood the city’s streets and valleys.
Should the Americans in today’s society get paid for our ancestors’ hardships?
Dervorn Kelly is a scholar from Rappahannock Community College, and he thinks that the descendants from slaves should get reparations because that would mean free education, life insurance, and free financial aid for any school in the US. This idea would be terrible; it would be riots all across the world because people will feel like they are slave descendants too. Another scholar by the name of Donte Williams thinks that African Americans should get reparations because of the long years of suffering. The money could be used to build broken window cities, and the money could be used to further education of the poor. This is not a bad idea but people should think about who the government will tax and who they will not tax. African Americans should not receive reparations from the U.S. government for slavery because people would spend money on useless things, it won’t heal the damaged that was caused for generations and the government wouldn’t know who to …show more content…
tax.
The money from reparations that African Americans would receive will be spent on useless things. Reparations are the making of amends from the wrong one have done by paying money or simply helping the wronged. Recent research shows that African Americans spend more than what they make, don’t know how to invest, and don’t know how to save money. These are red flags. If African Americans get reparations it would be for nothing because they would not invest and not save. Matthew Corbin wrote on The Odyssey, “black people are spending money that they don't have and won't have at the end of the month. This trend of building never ending debt is partially why their poverty numbers are so high.” (1). This proves the never ending cycle that would be bad for reparations.
The spending of reparations can go both ways, good and bad. Does this mean African Americans will live rich but act poor? Matthew Corbin writes in The Odyssey, “As soon as black people get a huge chunk of money or their tax refund it appears that they all flock to the nearest high-end fashion spot to splurge.” (3). Since the tax refunds just came about a month ago the malls were filled and the newest shoes were brought right off the wall. This means that if you get thousands of dollars and blow it within a few weeks, why should anyone get reparations if all they are going to do is splurge on the newest foreign car or on pointless things? He furthered on The Odyssey with, “Many young black people work and spend their money on items that either decrease in value after being bought or are not sustainable. Cars and sneakers are prime examples of such things.” (4). This quote proves that young and sometimes experienced African Americans don’t think before they buy, or they don’t think ahead for the future. Nevertheless, reparations should not be in money form because it would be blown on expensive materials that would have no value in years to come. In conclusion, African Americans will not only spend money on useless things, but the money will not heal the damage from slavery. The damage from slavery lingers through the generations of black oppression and the determination of African Americans to climb to the top. Reparations for this group of people (African Americans) would only stir up some trouble. David Frum wrote on The Atlantic, “If African Americans are due payment for slavery, what will the government do about the Native Americans who lost a whole continent? Also the Mexican-Americans, who were denied their rights to move back to their former country? Or the Japanese Americans, interned during World War II (WWII)? What about the Chinese Americans that was victims of coolie labor and the Oriental Exclusion Acts which prohibited immigration of Chinese laborers?” (1). These groups may grant that they were not abused and mistreated in the same way, but in some way it destroyed each one in a different way.
Furthermore, the talk about damages can go on for decades and not be solved. Alma Carten, professor of social work, wrote on The Conversation, “For blacks descended from slaves, the subject evokes feelings of shame and embarrassment associated with the degradations of slavery. For whites whose ancestry makes them complicit, there are feelings of guilt about a system that is incongruent with the democratic ideals on which this country was founded.” (4). She talks about how whites will have feelings of guilt, and for blacks the feelings of shame and embarrassment. The government would think that money from reparations would heal what has happened in the past. The government might be trying to buy us out. Finally, Alma Carten writes on The Conversation, “Since slavery, the church has been a formidable force for the survival of blacks in an America still grappling with the residual effects of white supremacy.” (1). This means that the effects shifted the damaged community to the church which subsided the effects of oppression. African Americans not only would spend their money on useless things, and the money wouldn’t heal decades of damage but the government would not know who to tax.
The government makes sure every person that lives in the U.S.
files their taxes, when thinking about reparations who would they tax? This question ponders the community and some may say it’s from descendants of slave owners. This would be a huge problem because who are the descendants, and who are the slave descendants. Anyone can claim they’re from a certain blood line. An unknown source from The New York Times website wrote, “Payments will have to come from taxpayers, who have no culpability for those past crimes and little, if any, of the benefit.” (1). This statement could mean more than one thing. One, the proposal for the paying of reparations was aimed for the whites who ancestors were owners of slaves during the slavery period. Two, are these people going to be okay with paying these amounts of money for something they didn’t do? Last but not least, will this settle the race conflict that’s going on or would the world still be the
same.
The taxing of individuals who did not commit these crimes will feel as though they shouldn’t pay a penny, which brings up “taxation without representation”. Taxation without representation happened because of the British taxing the thirteen colonies. They taxed without any representatives, which caused the American Revolution. If this sudden event caused a major war what do you think taxing the descendants of former slave owners will do? The same source from The New York Times website wrote, “Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, and countless others, some famous and others obscure, have echoed the claim based on the wealth stolen from enslaved people and opportunities denied during the years of segregation that followed.” (1). This topic has been amongst many important persons, and they think their people has been stripped of their wealth by the Jim Crow laws. They lost opportunity’s during the segregation period. In conclusion, reparations shouldn’t be payed because they’ll be spent on useless things, it won’t heal the damage, and the government wouldn’t know who to tax. During the post-slavery time, reparations came up more than one time. The talk stirred the community and it was always looked down upon. It would come up then die down again, this would happen over a great period of time. African Americans should not get the money because they wouldn’t know what to do with it; they would simply spend their money on the newest shoes, or the best looking car. The damage that was done could never be restored because of the pain and suffering slaves went through; and African Americans pain and suffering during the Jim Crow era. Buying out slavery is not acceptable for today’s society. The money coming from descendants of slave owners can stir up a lot of trouble. The government would not knowhow to tax and who to tax, making this plan irrelevant. In conclusion, we have to think about these reparations, what could happen in the future and who will it drastically affect.
Reference
1) Who Would Pay for Reparations, and Why? - NYTimes.com. (2014, June 9). Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/06/08/are-reparations-due-to-african-americans/who-would-pay-for-reparations-and-why
2) Corbin, M. (2016, April 5). 5 Reasons Why Black People Are Still Broke. Retrieved from https://www.theodysseyonline.com/5-reasons-black-people-still-broke
3) Carten, A. (2015, July 27). How the legacy of slavery affects the mental health of black Americans today. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/how-the-legacy-of-slavery-affects-the-mental-health-of-black-americans-today-44642
4) Frum, D. (2014, June 3). The Impossibility of Reparations - The Atlantic. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/06/the-impossibility-of-reparations/372041/
5)