Reparations for Black Communities Through Educational Reform

Introduction

Just over four centuries ago, the first African slaves arrived in the United States, beginning what would become a rapidly growing and lucrative industry that persisted well into the 19th century. By the start of the Civil War in 1861, there were nearly 4 million Black slaves in the United States, despite the federal government having banned the importation of new African slaves in 1808 (Hacker, 2021). The importation ban did little to stop the trade, and the practice continued on a large scale after 1808 in defiance of federal law (Africans in America, 2022). Although precise figures are unavailable, current estimates indicate that during the period between 1619 and 1865, enslaved Africans in the United States contributed approximately 410 billion hours of labor to the American economy (Hacker, 2021). Moreover, modern scholars routinely underestimate the economic value of these billions of hours of forced labor; the value could easily run into the trillions of dollars depending on which calculation method is used (Darity et al., 2022).

Beyond the capital produced by slaves in the United States, the value of their physical bodies — used as instruments to generate that capital — was estimated to exceed all of the investments in the burgeoning republic's railroads and factories combined (Ray & Perry, 2020). The net effect of these financial contributions was to further enrich American society in general and elite white slaveholders in particular, at the expense of their human captives. As Ray and Perry (2020) emphasize, "Slavery enriched white slave owners and their descendants, and it fueled the country's economy while suppressing wealth building for the enslaved" (para. 6).

These are critically important points in any modern discussion of reparations because they underscore the fact that slavery not only unjustly enriched white slaveholders during its existence but also helped to build intergenerational wealth among their descendants that would not otherwise have been possible. Many of the descendants of slaveholders continue to benefit from the forced labor of ancestors who were either brought to this country against their will or born into lifelong servitude. The post-Civil War scenario would have been nightmarish enough for the four million recently freed slaves — most of whom lacked the skills needed to secure meaningful employment — but their suffering did not end in April 1865.

As the research that follows will show, emancipated Black Americans continued to suffer from a constellation of unconstitutional stratagems specifically intended to prevent them from exercising their right to vote or improving their station in life. Despite some progress over the past 70 years in helping African Americans secure voting rights and equitable access to public institutions, Black Americans in the United States remain marginalized today as measured by every available quality-of-life standard. African Americans have higher incarceration rates, shorter life expectancies, lower average incomes, and lower educational attainment compared to their white counterparts, and these grim statistics have remained largely unchanged — or have even worsened — for far too long. As Ray and Perry (2020) point out:

The United States has yet to compensate descendants of enslaved Black Americans for their labor. Nor has the federal government atoned for the lost equity from anti-Black housing, transportation, and business policy. Slavery, Jim Crow segregation, anti-Black practices like redlining, and other discriminatory public policies in criminal justice and education have robbed Black Americans of the opportunities to build wealth (defined as assets minus debt) afforded to their white peers. (para. 7)

Problem Statement. The history of Black oppression in the United States is well documented. From the days of slavery through the Jim Crow era and into the present, Black Americans have faced discrimination and violence at the hands of their white counterparts. This long history of racism has left Black communities at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to education. In order to begin to rectify this injustice, reparations should be paid in the form of educational reform.

Purpose. The overarching purpose of this study was to develop a timely and informed answer to the guiding research question: "In what ways can educational reform serve as reparation for Black communities?" To this end, the paper demonstrates that educational reform should take many forms, including but not limited to increased funding for Black-majority schools, hiring more Black teachers and administrators, and expanding curriculum options that focus on the experiences and contributions of Black Americans.

This purpose is highly congruent with the need for the citizens of the United States to reckon with the lingering legacy of segregation in the public education system. School districts should be desegregated in order to promote diversity and equity. It is important to remember that reparations are not a handout; they are a means of beginning to make up for centuries of oppression and maltreatment. Educational reform is one step toward justice for Black Americans, and it is time for the country to make things right.

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