"The Case for Reparations" begins with the story of Clyde Ross, an African-American man from Mississippi who moves to the Chicago area in 1947, during the Great Migration. After experiencing the violent, direct racism of the Jim Crow South, Ross, upon moving north, is taken advantage of by a speculator who sells him a home on contract, a predatory way that sellers would take advantage of the lack of legitimate options available to Black homeowners. In response, Ross joined an organization called the Contract Buyers League, which among other things, sought restitution for the money lost through buying homes on contract.
This kind of story, unfortunately, was extremely common for African-American families in the early postwar period, and its results can still be seen today. However, despite the impacts of this racism still being present, there is a general reluctance to acknowledge the idea that there might be repayment owed to communities, as opposed to just apologies. The idea of reparations is not new, but it is controversial—Congress has never even passed a bill to establish a committee that would assess the feasibility of reparations.
But, Coates argues, America's prosperity is tied to its history of slavery and racism. Slaves were the largest property asset in the United States and helped found the American economy. The structure of cities like Chicago is not accidental, but the result of dedicated planning designed to keep African Americans, who were viewed as undesirable, out. While dominant narratives talk about how African Americans have failed and are therefore responsible for their situation, in fact, America went out of its way to exploit Black families and continues to do so.
