The faith community can help pass a reparations bill

Last summer, after the death of George Floyd by the Minneapolis Police Department and subsequent protests across the country, I thought a lot about how I, as a believer and as a white man, could better stand up for people of color. Reading “White Fragility” was not enough: I had to use my privilege to “meddle in politics”, like Pope FrancisPope Francis Pope Encourages Audiences To Take A Break From The Stresses Of Modern Life Pope Francis reintroduces the limitations of the Latin Mass and returns Benedict Pope Francis to the Vatican after an intestinal operation MORE has urged Catholics and other people of goodwill to do so. Amends were mentioned many times, and I began investigating.

HR40, the bill before Congress that would fund a year-long study to investigate reparations and make recommendations for apologies and redress, has a long history of introducing any congressional with little action. Believers also have a long history of advocacy for reparations. Religious leaders have campaigned for reparations in the United States since 1894 when Mrs. Callie House, Rev. Isaiah H. Dickerson, and four other pastors started the reparation movement by forming the National Ex-Slave and Mutual Relief Bounty and Pension Association .

representative John ConyersJohn James ConyersCalifornia comes to terms with the costs and consequences of slavery Democrats debate timing and wisdom of redress vote House committee approves redemption bill MORE Jr. (D-Mich.) First introduced the bill in 1989 and reintroduced it at every congressional session for 30 years, but it never gained significant attraction or support – until last year.

representative Sheila Jackson LeeSheila Jackson LeeHillicon Valley: Russian Hacker Group Suspected to Be Behind Kaseya Attack Goes Offline | DHS funding package flows millions into migrant surveillance | Jen Easterly sworn in as director of DHS cyber agency Black Caucus urges Democratic leaders to accelerate voting rights Ron Johnson was booed at the June 16 celebration in Wisconsin MORE (D-Texas) reintroduced it after Rep. Conyers died, and 173 members of Congress had signed by the end of the year. That was a record number of sponsors, but still not enough to make it through the House of Representatives, let alone the Senate.

The US government also has a long history of establishing reparations commissions. Similar commissions were established in 1980 to investigate the circumstances surrounding the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, in 1978 to erect and maintain an appropriate memorial to those who died in the Holocaust, and in the 1940s under the Claims Commission Act of 1946 19 to investigate claims made by Native Americans against the US government.

Faith communities are uniquely able to initiate honest dialogue about racial justice. Faith communities and religious leaders have been at the forefront of many of our country’s most critical moves for justice, from the abolition of slavery to today’s Sanctuary Movement, and the slavery reparation movement is no different.

In 2019, Bishop Eugene Sutton of the Diocese of Maryland testified before the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives for HR 40 and said, “Making amends is simply fixing what is broken. It’s not just about monetary compensation. An act of reparation is an attempt to make whole again, to restore; to offer atonement; to make amends; to reconcile an injustice or an injury. ”

The Episcopal Church has apologized for its role in maintaining American slavery through its interpretation of the Bible. Several dioceses have introduced restitution programs.

Prominent political activist and host of Make it Plain, Rev. Mark Thompson, has been involved with HR 40 since it was launched by Rep. Conyers. In a recent interview with Human Rights Watch, Rev. Thompson made it clear that reparations are intended not only to apologize for slavery, but also for all sociopolitical structures that have emerged from it. Reparations are needed, he said, because “slavery had descendants – those descendants were Jim Crow and lynchings and black codes and voter suppression. … white terror, Ku Klux Klan, segregation, redlining, mass incarceration and aggressive police. This is something that we as a people must have fixed, and of all that remains there is a deep psychological trauma. ”

Rev. Thompson makes an important point: Today 48 state legislatures are enforcing 389 voter suppression bills. Just as my organization, the Franciscan Action Network, is campaigning for HR 40 to be passed so that the United States can begin to face its history, we are trying to eradicate structures that leave people of color behind, such as electoral repression by standing up for the For the People Act as one of the leaders of the Coalition of Faithful Democracy.

Over 300 religious leaders, religious interest groups and denominational offices have signed a letter of faith in support of HR 40. They represent a variety of traditions from the National Council of Churches to the Union for Reformed Judaism, as well as religious advocacy and direct aid agencies such as Bread for the World, Church World Service, and the National Council of Jewish Women.

At a press conference last week, many of these religious leaders called for HR40 to be passed. It is clear that the bill is more dynamic than ever. The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee has voted to send the bill to the House of Representatives for a vote for the first time. People of faith must take the next step in its transition.

Through HR 40, we can acknowledge the past and take steps to correct a grave injustice inflicted on our black sisters and brothers. Will you join us and advocate correcting this injustice?

Jason L. Miller is the director of campaigns and development for the Franciscan Action Network in Washington.