Three decades after the idea of reparations was first introduced on Capitol Hill to help repair the lasting effects of slavery, a new bill that would lead to the creation of a “reparations commission” is moving closer to a full vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Juana Summers of NPR has reported that “the House Judiciary Committee took up the bill on Wednesday evening [April 14], and was expected to vote on the measure for the first time since former Democratic Rep. John Conyers initially introduced it in 1989.”
According to Summers, “the legislation has the support of more than 170 Democratic co-sponsors and key congressional leaders.” After the judiciary committee vote, the lead sponsor of the H.R. 40 bill, Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, said bringing it to a vote on the House floor would be “cleansing” for the country and she challenged Republicans who argued that such a commission was unnecessary.
