Want to Boost the Economy? Consider Reparations:
a satirical look at a serious issue
“You even stole our dreams, so let us have more things!” Bugatti Bilal chanted ahead of hundreds of thousands of Reparations Now marchers as they descended on the Nation’s Capital.
There was no warning of the March: no tweets, no Facebook posts, nothing on Snapchat, and unlike most marches that have taken place near or by the Lincoln Memorial, the Reparations Now March had an unlikely destination — Georgetown.
“We met on line at the 18th edition, Re-hashed eel-skin, Jordan release and realized we all had something in common,” stated one protester who refused to give his name.
That sentiment was echoed by many present.
Although no one claimed leadership, Bugatti Bilal(who asked his last name be withheld to protect his family’s privacy) acted as the impromptu spokesman of the group of extravagantly dressed men and women. Bilal, a self-proclaimed millionaire, often drifted between product critique, “thread count isn’t the only factor, what the product is made of, and how it feels to the hand are equally important,” and historian, “we just want Special Field Order Number 15 honored…and we don’t need the mule.”
“We have been taught in school that the source of the policy of ‘40 acres and a mule’ was Union General William T. Sherman’s Special Field Order No. 15, issued on Jan. 16, 1865. (That account is half-right: Sherman prescribed the 40 acres in that Order, but not the mule. The mule would come later.).” Explained Henry Louis Gates Jr., historian and producer of the popular show, “Finding Your Roots.”
“But what many accounts leave out is that this idea for massive land redistribution actually was the result of a discussion that Sherman and Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton held four days before Sherman issued the Order,” Gates continues , “He (Sherman) met with 20 leaders of the black community in Savannah, Ga., where he was headquartered following his famous March to the Sea. The meeting was unprecedented in American history.”
The discussion of Reparations has picked up steam recently although few can agree on if it’s an issue that needs to be tackled.
“Its likelihood of getting through Congress is nil, second of all, I think it would be very divisive,” proclaimed Vermont Senator, Bernie Sanders.
Ta-Nehisi Coates, who’s seminal piece, “The Case For Reparations,” propelled the issue into the mainstream, quickly responded, “He could very easily say, ‘Listen, I don’t know if I support reparations or not, but I support H.R. 40, I support the study.”
H.R. 40 calls for a Commission to Study Reparation for African-Americans. Sponsored by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the legislation has languished in congress for over three years garnering only two supporters.
A United Nation working group, Experts on People of African Descent, recently met with Black Americans, and after weeks of discussions, believe that Reparations should be more than a discussion.
Chairwoman Professor Mireille Fanon-Mendes France said, “The colonial history, the legacy of enslavement, racial subordination and segregation, racial terrorism and racial inequality in the U.S. remains a serious challenge as there has been no real commitment to reparations and to truth and reconciliation for people of African descent.”
What am I gonna do with 40 acres? I don’t even know what that looks like. Put some money in our pockets. We the ones keeping America afloat any damn way
“We don’t care about none of that,” shouted Bugatti Bilal, “what am I gonna do with 40 acres? I don’t even know what that looks like. Put some money in our pockets. We the ones keeping America afloat any damn way.”
Economist Gerald T. Boden Jr., author of Amsterdam News Bestseller, “Economics for E’rbody,” says that there’s some validity to that claim.
“Black people spend at disproportionate rates, we’re talking in comparison to our population. 98% of Black folk own cellphones. 98%. That 2% — they’re toddlers and infants.”
Boden Jr., although disparaged by many in the Black community for his strong stance against consumerism, ironically, is an advocate for reparations.
“Numbers don’t lie. And these aren’t numbers I made up. These numbers are based on surveys. Nielsen said that Blacks have 1.3 Trillion dollars in spending power. Nielsen said Blacks are more aggressive consumers of media and they shop more frequently. That Blacks watch more television (37%), make more shopping trips (eight), purchase more ethnic beauty and grooming products (nine times more), read more financial magazines (28%) and spend more than twice the time at personal hosted websites than any other group. So be mad at yourselves for answering those questions and Nielsen for printing them.”
As the sun began to set, marchers teetered off into local high-end shops, many exiting with several bags. Bugatti Bilal proudly displayed five Ralph Lauren bags. “Polo still got regional differences, I couldn’t cop half of this up top.” Bilal concluded, “Let me tell you, the next time we have a recession, get one of them economist — take ‘em to congress. They’ll listen to him. You want to rebuild this country. Give us reparations and watch us boost this economy…one Polo shirt at a time.”
