by ROBERT J. HANSEN September 19, 2024 Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on X (Opens in new window)
Robert J. HansenSeptember 19, 2024
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By Robert J. Hansen | OBSERVER Staff Writer
Black Californians and community advocates have expressed frustration with the California Legislative Black Caucus for failing to bring two significant reparations bills to a vote at the end of the legislative session last month.
Three members of the caucus – assemblymembers Mia Bonta, Kevin McCarty, and Corey Jackson – faced an emotionally charged crowd during the State of Black California discussion hosted by the California Black Freedom Fund on Sept 14.
Bonta explained that implementation issues with state agencies led to her decision not to advance Senate Bill 1403, one of two stalled bills advocates are upset about. The other, SB 1331, would have established a reparations fund within the state treasury.
SB 1403 aimed to establish the California American Freedmen Affairs Agency to compensate Black Californians descended from enslaved people.
“Right now, California has an implementation problem … and we always struggle with implementation,” Bonta told the crowd.
Bonta explained that the lack of clarity about how the proposed agency would work made it too vague for her. “Without us having clarity and being very explicit … how the [agency] would interact with other agencies and what authority it would have is incomplete.”
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At one point, the emotionally charged discussion and frequent interruptions led Jackson to tell the crowd that if the process for the community discussion was not followed, the event would be adjourned early.
Despite the interruptions, Jackson addressed how the Black Caucus could rebuild trust with reparations advocates by ensuring open lines of communication. He also stressed the importance of maintaining solidarity even during disagreements.
“We have plenty of people trying to undermine our voices and discourage us, so we need to make sure we’re not doing that to each other,” Jackson said. “There’s no doubt we will always have disagreements, but we all share the same North Star.”
Bonta emphasized that achieving reparations is a years-long effort requiring collective work done “step by step.”
In 2020, the California Legislature established a task force to advocate for reparations for African Americans, particularly the direct descendants of victims of U.S. chattel slavery. The task force last year released its final 1,100-page report, which included 115 recommendations for reparations legislation. These recommendations focus on systemic changes to address and repair harm, as well as direct payments. The report also proposed a formula for calculating monetary compensation and restitution for descendants.
A 2023 UC Berkeley study found that nearly 60% of California voters oppose the task force’s recommendation for cash payments to descendants of enslaved Black people in California, with 44% strongly opposed.
Dr. Kim Tabari from the University of Southern California highlighted persistent disparities faced by Black people in Sacramento, including lower job growth and earnings compared to white and Asian populations, higher unemployment rates and a greater percentage of families living in poverty. Similar disparities are observed across California with data showing Black Californians with a bachelor’s degree earned roughly $10 an hour less than their white or Asian counterparts.
“We are still devalued. This reflects how the value placed on Black people compares to the value placed on others,” Jackson said.
Chris Lodgson, lead organizer of the Coalition for a Just and Equitable California, expressed disappointment with the lawmakers’ responses, describing their handling of SB 1331 and SB 1403 as inadequate.
“The way you handled SB 1331 and SB 1403 was a disgrace,” Lodgson told the Black Caucus members.
Lodgson told The OBSERVER that despite current challenges, the caucus and the advocacy community still can collaborate to achieve reparations.
“There are ways forward, but it’s going to be difficult,” Lodgson said. “And what we’re hearing so far is not helping.”
The State of Black California Community Event Series has been a space for Black Californians to engage policymakers on issues related to reparations and the state of the Black community in collaboration with the California Black Freedom Fund and the Black Caucus.The series has two more events planned: in Oakland on Saturday, Sept. 28, and in the Inland Empire on Saturday, Oct. 5. Register here.
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