Black Bostonians group calls for $15 billion in reparations for slavery, discrimination

As Boston’s Task Force on Reparations continues to mull a path forward, a local group of Black Bostonians is calling for $15 billion from the city as reparations for slavery and centuries of discrimination. “It’s really difficult to put a right or wrong number on people’s lives, on lost labor that was given for free,” said Edwin Sumpter, co-director of the Boston People Reparations Commission. “But as an initial number, an initial start, this would be a good number to look at in the city of Boston.” The Boston People’s Reparations Commission was founded by Rev. Kevin Peterson, head of the New Democracy Coalition, to mobilize the community in the push for cash reparations. The commission is made up of 70 Black Bostonians and holds monthly meetings, Sumpter said. “Our ultimate goal is repair and reconciliation in Boston, a city plagued by racial strife,” Peterson said in a release Sunday evening. The commission’s recommendations call for the reparations to be broken into three sections: $5 billion for cash payouts to Black residents, $5 billion focused on education gaps and anti-crime investments, and $5 billion for economic development. The commission follows the formation of the Boston Task Force on Reparations, comprised...