04-21-2019, 12:20 PM
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), another presidential candidate, has introduced a companion bill to legislation sponsored by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) that would create a commission to study the idea of reparations.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), who leads the Congressional Black Caucus, said she believes the House could act on the issue in some way this year.
One option is the proposal from Jackson Lee — legislation first introduced in 1989 by former Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), but that never gained traction.
Jackson Lee’s bill has nearly 50 co-sponsors and she told POLITICO she was preparing to send a “Dear colleague” letter in the next few weeks to solicit more support within the caucus. Jackson Lee also said she expects her bill to receive a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee. “We want to be responsive to all Americans and we know how diverse this country has become,” Jackson Lee said in an interview. “We have consistently, as Democrats, wanted to say to the American people that we are for the people."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has voiced support for reparations several times in recent months. And fellow freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who now represents’ Conyers Detroit-area district, is a staunch supporter of Jackson Lee’s bill.
“Her bill is exactly the starting point that we need to have a full-blown conversation about reparations,” Tlaib said.
Bass said she also supports Jackson Lee’s bill — unlike some other legislation over the years — because it would focus on the way racism has been embedded in the nation’s institutions, rather than simply doling out cash.
“My problem with the entire discussion around reparations is that it’s really used, in my opinion, to ridicule African- Americans, as if what black people are interested in is a check,” Bass said in an interview. “And that’s not the point. The point is to really look at what has happened in this country, this country’s history, because we have never come to grips with it.”
Full piece: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/2...ns-1283460
Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), who leads the Congressional Black Caucus, said she believes the House could act on the issue in some way this year.
One option is the proposal from Jackson Lee — legislation first introduced in 1989 by former Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), but that never gained traction.
Jackson Lee’s bill has nearly 50 co-sponsors and she told POLITICO she was preparing to send a “Dear colleague” letter in the next few weeks to solicit more support within the caucus. Jackson Lee also said she expects her bill to receive a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee. “We want to be responsive to all Americans and we know how diverse this country has become,” Jackson Lee said in an interview. “We have consistently, as Democrats, wanted to say to the American people that we are for the people."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has voiced support for reparations several times in recent months. And fellow freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who now represents’ Conyers Detroit-area district, is a staunch supporter of Jackson Lee’s bill.
“Her bill is exactly the starting point that we need to have a full-blown conversation about reparations,” Tlaib said.
Bass said she also supports Jackson Lee’s bill — unlike some other legislation over the years — because it would focus on the way racism has been embedded in the nation’s institutions, rather than simply doling out cash.
“My problem with the entire discussion around reparations is that it’s really used, in my opinion, to ridicule African- Americans, as if what black people are interested in is a check,” Bass said in an interview. “And that’s not the point. The point is to really look at what has happened in this country, this country’s history, because we have never come to grips with it.”
Full piece: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/2...ns-1283460