Burned, Displaced and Fighting Back: A Battle for Reparations in Palm Springs

Negotiations were stalled soon after the city apologized, but picked up again this year. In April, the city offered $4.2 million to survivors and descendants in restitution to pay for 145 destroyed homes and damaged belongings. The city’s proposal also includes creating a healing center to honor the group and a community land trust to build affordable housing. A state push for reparations The offer from Palm Springs comes at a time when cities across the country are acknowledging their role in racist land grabs that displaced families of color and robbed them of generational wealth. California is currently leading a push for reparations for Black Americans who suffered from systemic racism and the legacy of slavery. Earlier this year, state lawmakers introduced a first-in-the nation package of reparations bills, based on two years of work from the California Reparations Task Force. The proposed bills, currently moving through the state legislature, stop just short of direct cash payments. Billboards about Section 14 can be seen off of freeway I-10 East towards Palm Springs, California. May 30, 2024. (Zaydee Sanchez/KQED) Cities and counties across the state are taking action at a local level, too. In the Bay Area, the city of...