Reparations Efforts in Alameda County Stumble and Try to Pick Themselves Up

“We are trying not to recreate the wheel,” Debra Gore-Mann, president and CEO of Oakland racial justice organization the Greenlining Institute, told KQED. In looking at other reparations projects, Gore-Mann said the Alameda County Commission quickly realized it didn’t have sufficient support or time. At a meeting on May 30, Gore-Mann asked supervisors for a dedicated staff, approval to make formal partnerships with Bay Area institutions, and a new deadline of June 30, 2026, to complete their work. The commission also asked for a budget of about $5 million, dwarfing the initial budget allocation of approximately $51,000. The requested budget would support research, public outreach and community listening sessions over the next two years. Commission members currently receive a $50 stipend for each meeting they attend. “I think $5 million is a hefty amount of funding,” Miley said, pointing to the county’s budget deficit, projected to reach between $70 million to $100 million this year. He added that getting a board response to budget and other support requests could take months. In the meantime, Gore-Mann is concerned the commission will lose its progress so far as faith in the county’s commitment to reparations falters. “Without a sense of what resources...