New York lawmakers pass 'historic' bill to consider reparations for slavery

New York may be poised to study the generational impacts of slavery through a new commission to consider reparations for Black residents.

State lawmakers passed legislation Thursday that would establish a commission to study the legacy of slavery, and possibly make recommendations for monetary compensation or other reparations for New York's Black residents. The bill, which was passed after debate in the state Assembly and Senate, will go to Gov. Kathy Hochul for her signature.

“We need to change our political structures and laws to ensure Black New Yorkers are empowered. This is an important step in changing a long history of systemic racism and discrimination," state Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages, a sponsor of the bill, said in a statement.

How the bill addresses slavery and reparations

The legislation would establish a commission tasked with studying slavery and segregation and their economic impacts on Black people in the state, and considering the role of the state and federal government in supporting the institution of slavery. Then, it would recommend "appropriate remedies and reparations."

The commission would be directed to: "Examine the current condition of living people of African descent in the state of New York, to the extent practicable, including, but not limited to, economic, political, educational, and social conditions."

The commission would be made up of nine members chosen by Hochul and the leaders of the state Senate and Assembly. Any recommendations made by the committee would be non-binding.

Slavery's legacy in New York

The first enslaved Africans arrived in New York in the 1620s and built some of the earliest infrastructure and buildings, "including the wall that gives Wall Street its name," the bill says.

The bill outlines how the treatment of enslaved Africans and, later, the segregation of and discrimination against their descendants has permeated society today, with effects including voter suppression, housing discrimination and disproportionate incarceration rates.

"The consequences of slavery in New York State is not an echo of the past, but can still be observed in daily life," the bill says.

The status of the state as an economic and cultural hub of the world came on the backs of the work of enslaved Africans, the bill says. Yet, it says, the state also sees high levels of income disparity in large part due to the legacy of slavery.

“This is a historic piece of legislation that will confront the insidious history of slavery and the way its legacy continues to affect Black New Yorkers today," New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, the first Black person to hold the position, said in a statement.

State to join California in studying reparations

Lawmakers in California passed similar legislation in 2020, becoming the first state in the nation to establish a reparations task force.

That task force made a list of recommendations earlier this year that included a formal apology and the creation of an agency to handle compensation claims and possible “down payments" to eligible residents. It also suggested how to calculate the amount California owes its Black residents. The group made estimates for possible reparations to Black people in the state, which some economists have estimated could cost hundreds of billions of dollars.

Lawmakers will have to consider whether to adopt any of its recommendations.

Other states and the federal government have stalled potential legislation to study reparations. The Chicago suburb of Evanston, Illinois, was the first city to make reparations available through a housing initiative that allowed Black residents to apply for money to put toward housing and home improvements in an effort to make up for decades of racial discrimination in housing.

HOW CALIFORNIANS FEEL ABOUT REPARATIONS:Most residents don't support reparations payments for Black people, survey finds

Contributing: The Associated Press