The bill does not contain provisions for the form that the compensation would take, whether in the form of direct cash payments or safety net programs. Despite the open design, it is a high order to buy from enough legislators to draw up a voting right even in the middle of Congress.
Steny Hoyer, leader of the majority of the House, during a press call on Wednesday evaded questions as to whether he would bring the bill to the floor and tried to force Biden to do so. proposing that the president establish his own remuneration commission.
Although both parties have in the past been reluctant to pass recovery legislation, the majority of Republicans are against it. A February POLITICO / Morning Consult poll found that 60 percent of Democrats support the formation of a committee to study compensation, while 74 percent of Republicans oppose it. Many on the right argue that today’s legislators should not be held responsible for past mistakes, such as addiction.
Given the ongoing national crackdown on race and systemic racism – now recognized by the trial of Derek Chauvin and a second high-profile police murder in Brooklyn City Center, Minnestown – compensation lawyers say it is an excellent opportunity for recovery legislation to promote. It currently has 180 co-sponsors in the House, the most ever. And even with the slimmed-down House majority of Democrats, which includes several hesitant moderates, it’s in its best position to still succeed that room. This would mean a great victory for proponents of repairs and proponents of racial justice.
“I do not think there is any opposition that could prevent it from being driven out of the house,” said Dreisen Heath, a Human Rights Watch program lawyer. “We are very confident.”
But after a win in the House, the fate of HR 40 – and the chances of finally making it to Joe Biden’s desk – are bleak. The White House maintained that Biden supported the study of compensation and Vice President (then Senator) Kamala Harris was a co-worker of the law for companions in 2019. The full adoption of the bill would still require votes from all 50 Senate Democrats and ten Republicans, who are almost certainly against it.
“The Senate is not a good place to be with this legislation, or any legislation that is progressive and especially promotes the interests of African Americans,” Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Chairman of the House Committee on the Constitution, said Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, during a press conference on Monday.
“You must have ten Republicans now,” Cohen continued. “And there are not so many of them who will stop and will not run again, and a moment come to Jesus.”
Rep.Burgess Owens (R-Utah), an African-American, described the legislation on Wednesday during his testimony as “treacherous” and “treacherous”, suggesting that denying black Americans is to blame for failed Democratic policies rather as the legacy of slavery or systematic liberation.
“If you want to repay the African-American community, we’re giving back our history,” Owens said. “We are not an unhappy, hopeless race. We are just like everyone else. ”
Republicans from the House Judiciary affirmed these complaints during the drafting of the committee. Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) argued that Democrats alone should be responsible for paying the commission, saying their party has the greatest responsibility for policies that unduly disadvantage black Americans.
“I hope we will not alleviate heinous sins by punishing great-grandchildren of people who have done wrong,” Gohmert said.
The interpretation of the bill’s provisions and the definition of the commission’s role will be crucial to efforts to get more Republicans on board, Democrats say. The Senate companion to the bill currently has 16 co-sponsors. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), chief sponsor of HR 40, said the bill is largely an acknowledgment of the damage done in the past, or a ‘national apology’ to African Americans. She said she expects the commission to identify the legacy of slavery and specific policies that African Americans have systematically released.
“We are committed to establishing this HR 40 as legislation to address the deep-seated racism and historical and systemic elements of abuse of African Americans over the centuries,” Lee said in a press release Monday.
In a statement issued Thursday, Sen. praised. Cory Booker (DN.J.), sponsor of the Senate Bill, advancing the House Bill.
“Our nation has not yet fully acknowledged the painful legacy of slavery, white supremacy and systemic racism that has plagued the founding of this country,” Booker said. “It is important that we correct the wrong things in our country’s most discriminatory policies that have halted the upward mobility of African American communities over generations, and that we can not really continue without first addressing the extent of the damage of the past. fully documented. “
Some advocates have suggested that the ultimate goal of the legislation – the establishment of a commission to study compensation – could be easier achieved by means of an executive order.
So far, White House officials have not indicated that they are prepared to put further pressure on Congress. Lee rejected the proposal Monday, underlining her commitment to pass legislation in both houses of Congress.
‘We present [White House] leadership also indicated their understanding and support, ”Lee said. But we are now taking legislative steps … any further strategies will certainly be addressed as needed. ‘
At the same time, the concept of compensation is gaining ground in some municipalities across the country. Evanston, Ill., Became the first city to draw up a recovery policy for its residents in March. The plan appropriates $ 10 million over the next ten years in $ 25,000 household payments to qualifying descendants of Black Evanston residents who have been victims of housing discrimination. Although HR 40 does not pay for African-Americans for payments, advocates for compensation cited the Evanston plan as one possible model.
However, some advocates remain skeptical about a model like Evanston, which focuses primarily on housing and will not promote the ultimate goal of narrowing the gap in racial prosperity.
“There are definitely ongoing issues that bring residents to their city governments to address damage,” said Kirsten Mullen, a writer and researcher. “But they should not be confused with the objectives of a national compensation program for black American descendants of American slavery.”