[lbo-talk] South & North

[JBrown72073 at cs.com]

On reparations, Wojtek writes:
>1. It relies on stereotypy and the racist notions that all black and all
>whites uniforms and clearly defined groups.  Without that notion, the whole
>concept falls apart like a house of cards.  Clearly, not all whites were
>supporters of slavery and blacks were slaves, some of them were slave
>owners.  Who should pay and who should receive?  All "pure bread" whites and
>all "pure bread" blacks - is there is such a thing?  How about those with
>biracial parents - should they receive only a portion of what 'pure bread'
>blacks get, and by the same token, pay only a portion of what "pure bread"
>whites pay?

This is a misunderstanding of the reparations demand as I've read about it, 
and I haven't read much.  First, it's not individuals but institutions which 
would pay (think church and corporation).  Second, it's not individuals but 
organizations/community structures which would benefit.  How about starting by 
funding schools that African American children go to, for example.  The goal is 
to free up some money which will give the owed--to group some resources to 
build and struggle.  Right now, the organizations and infrastructure that serve 
African Americans are mostly starved for resources.  Done right, reparations 
would not be a way of papering over class exploitation but of revealing it.

Jenny Brown