California lawmakers on reparations panel challenge assumptions about payments to Black residents

By SOPHIE AUSTIN
Associated Press/Report for America

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A California state senator and member of a historic task force studying reparations proposals for African Americans says it could be tough to pass large payments for eligible residents. Gov. Gavin Newsom says facing the legacy of slavery is about more than payments. Compensation for Black Californians whose ancestors were enslaved is part of a hefty list of proposals from the state’s reparations task force. The nine-member panel has spent nearly two years studying the issue. The committee signed off Saturday on recommendations that will make up its final report. The fate of those proposals will then be in the hands of state lawmakers.