Before we begin, let me first state that I do not agree with reparations. I know some will be saying, "Oh, no he didn’t" I also know that this may be crossing a line, but I’m willing to talk about it.
Now with that, yes I am an Afro-America, I am not an Uncle Tom for my belief that the proposal of reparation is not good for the nation.
Lets start first with the calls from some African countries asking for reparations for the loss of some of their population. Why should the U.S. Government pay these countries any more money then what they already have?
1. Some of these African countries sold their own people to the new white masters. Where was this concern for the population then?
2. Would this not be a double payment? These tribes who gave up their so-called population, were paid in some cases. Yes, I do understand that some tribes had no choice in the matter due to the fact that other tribes, due to a loss of a war gave up the men and women of the tribes. However, why is it that the U.S. must foot the bill? These tribes that are asking for these monies, should speak to the tribes that sold their people into bondage.
Section two of my argument:
Who will be paid? Not all Afro-Americans in the U.S. are of slave decent. If we look deeper into the history of the United States, you will see that some blacks owned slaves themselves. So my question is, who will get paid? How do we know that some of these slave-owning descendants too will be getting funds from the Federal Government?
Section three of my argument:
Should the family members of the northern soldiers who also made sacrifice also be taxed to foot this bill? What about the abolitionist who also fought and died to end slavery? We can not discount also the American Indian with the lands that have been provided to them. How is it that the government can take the lands of the indigence people in order to write a wrong? It will be another wrong, and more money will be paid in order to correct the issue. See below.
From 1814 to 1824, Jackson was instrumental in negotiating nine out of eleven treaties, which divested the southern tribes of their eastern lands in exchange for lands in the west. The tribes agreed to the treaties for strategic reasons. They wanted to appease the government in the hopes of retaining some of their land, and they wanted to protect themselves from white harassment. As a result of the treaties, the United States gained control over three-quarters of Alabama and Florida, as well as parts of Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Kentucky and North Carolina. This was a period of voluntary Indian migration, however, and only a small number of Creeks, Cherokee and Choctaws actually moved to the new lands. (From: Indian Remove 1814-1858
How is the government able to provide the 40 acres and mule that the Afro-American was promised? Did Jackson have no choice but to revise the Special field order No. 15? Would this have sparked another war between the U.S. and the Native American people?
Comparative Unity:
Are you better off living here in the U.S.? What would your life be like if the slave trade had never happened? As we can see in recent times, that the continent is riddled with genocide. Here everyone has the freedom to come and go as he or she pleases, work, and live as they please. You merely just have to have the wherewithal to do so.
I’m cutting this one short; however, this will be a two part series. I will leave you with this last comment.
Who is to pay, and what of the children of bi-racial marriages, or relationships?
My wife comes from an Irish family, and she is second generation. Her family did not own slaves, so why should they have to pay? This also goes for the Italians, and Germans. So who is suppose to foot the bill? Should my best friend, who’s family I seriously doubt owned slaves foot the bill? What of the white working class people of this country, should they foot the bill? Most of these people are forth or fifth generation poo, so broke that they can’t even afford the R. My daughter is biracial, so how should she get paid? Should she take monies out of one pocket, and put it into another? There are a lot of aspect that one should think of before making this decision. The economics alone would be a disastrous. Which I will get into in the second post. It will be shorter, I promise.
3 comments:
Hey, I just wanted to let you know that I turned the comment moderation on. You will certainly be welcome to leave comments at WASP 101. Furthermore, I am impressed with what you are doing with your blog. The WTF story was very interesting. Keep up the good work, and I apologize for the crap that those morons put you and others through.
Interesting argument.
Africa is riddled with problems many of them are sparked from the outside. The genocides are supported by the powers of the West in the form of financing, weapons, training, and other services. To infer that it is completely because of the nature of the environment is naive. The complexity of the situation and all the variables it presents is one that you might not have given much thought. It probably should not be in your simply posting.
Your argument is valid and well reasoned. I agree with most your points but you have not tried to refute your own self. For example, I can say how come other groups have received reparations and other preferential treatment; examples of this are nations with the nation, casinos, monies, return of some lands, legal aid, and social aid. Maybe part two can complete your argument, atleast in these area.
Great Topic and Post!
Stephen,
I get your point in your last paragraph. I did not think about the Native American people, as I was much more focused on the African-Americans in this country.
"The genocides are supported by the powers of the West in the form of financing, weapons, training, and other services." This thought had crossed my mind while writing this post. Funny that you should mention this, as there is a new film out, or coming out that deals with this subject. It’s a film with Clive Owens, where he is going against an evil World Bank. Hum, I think I will write another post on the subject.
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