Studying Sacramento History with an Eye Toward Reparations

A groundbreaking public history partnership examines past discrimination against the Black community. A parcel of land awaits development after being cleared by the City of Sacramento’s Redevelopment Agency in this photo from 1963. The Coloma Hotel and Singleton Buildings are being demolished in the background. The parcel, at 5th and L Streets, now includes a portion of the Golden 1 Center. Photo: Center for Sacramento History History graduate students at UC Davis are investigating past discrimination against the Black community in Sacramento during the 1950s and beyond. With direction from Professor Gregory Downs, and in partnership with the city of Sacramento and the Greater Sacramento Urban League, they seek to answer the question: What could reparations look like? Downs, a scholar of the 19th century American South, and his students are examining postwar redevelopment efforts— then called “slum clearance” — in Sacramento that forced a thriving Black community out of the city’s old West End, the neighborhood that now encompasses the Capitol Mall and Old Sacramento. They delved into the archives of a civil-rights lawyer, court cases, newspapers, and more, reporting their findings to Kelly Fong Rivas, senior advisor to Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg; and Troy Williams, chief impact officer...