$5 million in compensation for every African-American in San Francisco because of racism?
The city council presented a plan that led to controversy
San Francisco became the arena of serious controversy yesterday after a compensation plan for the legacy of systemic racism was presented to the city council, in which it is proposed that every African American in the city be given 5 million dollars, reported France Presse.
Discussed at a public meeting Tuesday night, the plan was drawn up by a commission tasked by the city with making proposals to correct the inequality that African-Americans have suffered in the US since the days of slavery.
In addition to its flagship measure, it contained about 100 recommendations, including guaranteeing a minimum annual income of nearly $100,000 for 250 years for every black adult eligible for benefits, a $1 house in San Francisco per family, and forgiveness of the debts of the recipients.
Opponents denounce the plan as “absurd”. “He’s not serious at all, and in addition to being a huge waste of time, he’s a total distraction,” San Francisco Republican Party leader John Dennis told AFP. “The city’s (annual) budget is $14 billion,” he said, adding that the plan would cost $50 billion.
Critics say it makes no sense to pay reparations in a state and city where blacks were never enslaved. Another argument raised against the measure is that taxpayers who were never slave owners should not have to pay money to people who were never slaves, the Associated Press noted. /Lyubomir Martinov, BTA/
