# Who should pay Reparations to African Americans? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 19, 2019, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753 "2019-06-19T16:52:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![Helmut\_Doork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e8c25b/32.png) [@Helmut\_Doork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helmut_Doork)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/321 "2019-06-21T20:23:10Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Well, there you have it. Can’t get much simpler than that: > > \*“If any of you black people don’t like it here, you can fuck right off and we’ll even cover your moving and travel expenses.” > \* > > Any takers of this generous offer?? You’re right, the govt. should take out their magic wand and remove racism from everyone who harbors it. And then everything will be fair going forward. You can do Who’s on First alone, I’m done with this bit. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/322 "2019-06-21T20:26:55Z")
I knew it! Had to be a bit. I’d hate to think you were being serious. ---
**Author:** ![Helmut\_Doork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e8c25b/32.png) [@Helmut\_Doork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helmut_Doork)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/323 "2019-06-21T20:32:32Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > I knew it! Had to be a bit. I’d hate to think you were being serious. My error, I meant you seem to be doing schtick, not me, all my comments here are proposing legitimate possible solutions to a difficult problem. Stating views you don’t hold are a form of trolling and frowned upon, nee prohibited, by this board, so I would not do that. ---
**Author:** ![Helmut\_Doork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e8c25b/32.png) [@Helmut\_Doork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helmut_Doork)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/324 "2019-06-21T20:40:05Z")
My English is how you say- inelegant. What I meant: Me: Reparations should be paid in the form of relocation assistance to Africa to anyone who wants to move there voluntarily. You: (paraphrasing) so force people to go another country they have never been? Me: no, I said voluntarily, those who wanted to. You: (paraphrasing) what does that have to do with reparations? Me: The reparations would be the cost of the relocation You: (paraphrasing) so you are saying, blacks, f-you, were are shipping you off, against your will? \* That\* bit ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/325 "2019-06-21T20:49:47Z")
So your solution really is: \*‘We can’t fix racism, but we can pay you to leave.’ \* It’s elegant in it’s simplicity. I’ll give you that. ---
**Author:** ![Helmut\_Doork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e8c25b/32.png) [@Helmut\_Doork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helmut_Doork)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/326 "2019-06-21T20:58:59Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So your solution really is: \*‘We can’t fix racism, but we can pay you to leave.’ \* > > It’s elegant in it’s simplicity. I’ll give you that. To give blacks and other minorities in the USA a completely level playing field and all of the opportunities and chances for prosperity that whites have, you would have to remove racism from the heart of every police officer, loan officer, employer, etc. etc. in the country. You have a method of doing that? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/327 "2019-06-21T21:07:06Z")
So you’re of the opinion that every police office, loan office, employer, etc… is a racist at heart? And you’re willing to extend this generous offer to every minority to return to their ancestral land, right? One small fly in the ointment… where are the Native Americans supposed to go? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/328 "2019-06-21T21:22:59Z")
On the bright side, I think we’ve settled the OP question of who’s going to pay for it; and it may finally be said without a note of irony: That’s mighty white of them. ---
**Author:** ![snoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@snoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoe)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/329 "2019-06-21T21:40:44Z")
\*snoe overrides better judgement and looks at what’s been going on in this thread, doop de doo \* BACK TO AFRICA? (I guess that in some people’s minds “Marcus Garvey and David Duke agree on this, therefore it’s not racist” is an argument. A straw man argument, sure, but let’s be honest— it’s all straw men.) ---
**Author:** ![Clu-Me-In](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@Clu-Me-In](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clu-Me-In)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/330 "2019-06-21T21:58:55Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > One of my ancestors was a refuge driven out of Ireland by the Great Famine. He enlisted in the Union Army at the very beginning of the Civil War. He was eventually captured in battle and died of scurvy in Andersonville Prison Camp, leaving a destitute widow and two small children. Another ancestor, a German immigrant, also enlisted in the Union Army at the start of the war, was captured, and became a permanent invalid from tuberculosis he got in prison camp. Another ancestor also served in the Union Cavalry. > > Do you owe me anything because my ancestors fought and died, at great sacrifice to my family, to free your ancestors? If not, why not? And if you are owed reparations, shouldn’t I get reparations from the UK for driving my ancestors out of Ireland? Your ancestors did not die to free my ancestors at all. Your ancestors died to keep the South as part of the Union. Blacks fought for both the Union and for the Confederacy. Lincoln’s primary aim was to keep the union as one - slavery was secondary to him. In fact, he would have given up on slavery to protect the Union. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2019, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/331 "2019-06-21T23:10:34Z")
Sorry, I havent read the 6 previous thread pages so maybe this has been addressed. My wife is about 1/16th black. In fact most “white” people I know especially us who have ancestors going back more than 3 generations in the US, have some native american or african american blood in them. So how would all that be figured out? ---
**Author:** ![Helmut\_Doork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e8c25b/32.png) [@Helmut\_Doork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helmut_Doork)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/332 "2019-06-22T00:03:52Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So you’re of the opinion that every police office, loan office, employer, etc… is a racist at heart? > > And you’re willing to extend this generous offer to every minority to return to their ancestral land, right? > > One small fly in the ointment… where are the Native Americans supposed to go? Jesus, if you are trying to wind me up you are doing a darn good job- kudos to you sir! Who said all, anything, and who in the world would infer that? Are you not aware of the literally thousands of present day lawsuits in the USA for discrimination in housing and jobs, police brutality cases, any of that? You implied in your own statement that Native Americans and blacks are an apples and oranges comparison, and then you make that comparison? What am I dealing with here? Here’s the original thought phrased in another way that you cannot possibly misinterpret, and lets see your response: tomorrow one of the leaders of a black rights group that follows the beliefs of the original BTA movement gets a meeting with the President, and presents him with undeniable proof of the following- they are direct descendants of slaves brought over by white Americans from Africa, have suffered tangible discrimination from various US govt. or business organizations, do not wish to be in the US any longer, wish to be in their ancestral homeland on a permanent basis and lack the means to do so on their own. What does the president say? (please not ‘tomorrow is Saturday, the president doesn’t meet with private citizens on weekends’) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/333 "2019-06-22T00:05:06Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > For some, perhaps. Certainly not for all. > > All were allowed by the government, which had not yet outlawed housing discrimination, and most used government-drawn maps that singled out black neighborhoods (usually with “red lines”) as having lower desirability for loan assistance. > . All could sue, some choose not to. Whose fault it that? They lined out poorer areas with higher crime. Yes, many of those were black neighborhoods, but also hispanic, etc. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/334 "2019-06-22T00:06:32Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > It was wrong for the Holocaust? America didnt pay reparations for the holocaust.:rolleyes: Do some fact checking next time. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/335 "2019-06-22T00:07:51Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Not just _once_. Let’s pretend there is a world outside the borders of the USoffuckin’A. What are we talking about here? _Who should pay Reparations to African Americans?_ The OP is about \*\*American \*\*Congress and **American** reparations. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/336 "2019-06-22T00:12:53Z")
> [@Clu-Me-In](#): > > Your ancestors did not die to free my ancestors at all. Your ancestors died to keep the South as part of the Union. Blacks fought for both the Union and for the Confederacy. Lincoln’s primary aim was to keep the union as one - slavery was secondary to him. In fact, he would have given up on slavery to protect the Union. Secondary but still a major goal. The entire Civil war was about one thing and one thing only- the Souths desire to keep their “peculiar institution” . That’s the sole and only reason the CSA left the Union. My GGGF also fought for the Union, recruited him right off the boat. He was lucky, they found he was a experienced woodcutter and he spent the war doing railroad work, cutting ties. None of my ancestors- on either side- even kept slaves for as far back as we know (perhaps back in Roman times, or more likely they \*were \*slaves). A few serfs, sure, but never slaves. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/337 "2019-06-22T00:25:32Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > America didnt pay reparations for the holocaust.:rolleyes: Do some fact checking next time. You didn’t specify America. Speaking of “fact checking”, care to offer a single quote to justify your baseless assertion that TNC is a “scamster” and a “racist”? Or do you care to take it back – maybe it was just a silly thing you said without thinking? We all make mistakes. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/338 "2019-06-22T00:26:44Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > They lined out poorer areas with higher crime. Do you have a cite that the “red lines” were about higher crime? Or is this just more baseless cite-free assertions? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/339 "2019-06-22T00:45:06Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > You didn’t specify America. > > Speaking of “fact checking”, care to offer a single quote to justify your baseless assertion that TNC is a “scamster” and a “racist”? Or do you care to take it back – maybe it was just a silly thing you said without thinking? We all make mistakes. The Op did. Does he want reparations for women, gays, Chinese, irish, hispanics? His first article mentioned only blacks, but you say he threw in a mention of native Americans last time. Is there any NON-racist ways of defining who is “black” (besides self-identification, of course). Leaving out so many other persecuted minorities , while including only his- I consider that a little bit racist. Note that Blacks got the Right to vote in 1870, women didnt get the right to vote until 1920. \*Fifty years after. \* Scamster? Yes, selling someone on something, then revealing the price later is a common scam. This is exactly what he is doing. Notice he never mentions how much reparations would cost. He knows full well once he mentions the huge price to the taxpaying public, he will lose most of his support. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2019, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753/340 "2019-06-22T00:58:57Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Does he want reparations for women, gays, Chinese, irish, hispanics? His first article mentioned only blacks, but you say he threw in a mention of native Americans last time. Is there any NON-racist ways of defining who is “black” (besides self-identification, of course). Leaving out so many other persecuted minorities , while including only his- I consider that a little bit racist. Note that Blacks got the Right to vote in 1870, women didnt get the right to vote until 1920. \*Fifty years after. \* > > Scamster? Yes, selling someone on something, then revealing the price later is a common scam. This is exactly what he is doing. Notice he never mentions how much reparations would cost. He knows full well once he mentions the huge price to the taxpaying public, he will lose most of his support. Yawn. More cite-free claims, apparently including mind-reading. Just another in the long line of baseless critics who throw vitriol at outspoken black people for saying something out of the mainstream. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-should-pay-reparations-to-african-americans/835753.md?page=18)