California city council passes $5.9m reparations deal with ex-residents

The Palm Springs city council on Thursday unanimously approved a $5.9m reparations settlement with former residents of a largely Black neighborhood that was leveled in the 1960s for commercial development. The city council was also set to approve another $21m for housing and small business support aimed at the former residents and their descendants. Former residents of the Section 14 neighborhood, which also included Latino families and other immigrants, have fought for decades to receive compensation for being pushed out of their neighborhood in the California resort town located about 70 miles (113km) east of Los Angeles. Palm Springs’ mayor, Jeffrey Bernstein, before casting his vote to approve the settlement, said he knew it was a mostly symbolic measure. “The truth is we can’t right the wrongs in the past,” Bernstein said. “There is no amount of money that can make up for the loss.” Pearl Devers, one of the former Section 14 residents, said: “While no amount of money can fully restore what we lost, this agreement helps pave the way for us all to finally move forward.” The advocacy group Section 14 Survivors said in a statement that the agreement acknowledged the city’s role in the destruction of...