Apologies Beyond the Words
This week, Drs. Gold and Ingarfield discuss proactive social justice, the death penalty, and how the righteous indignation and political optics of some can derail legitimate efforts to make amends for past wrongs.
Word of the Week: Reparation: This word has unfortunately become a politicized lightning rod. Ta-Nehisi Coates’ oldie-but-goodie article, "The Case for Reparations" is one to review for insight on how reparations for the U.S.’s history of enslavement could work.
Phase 1: Book Sanctuaries: Recently, Dr. Shaunna's local public library became the first designated "book sanctuary" in the State of Maryland. This is a clarion model to fight book banning, book burning, and to protect endangered book titles.
Phase 2: Marcellus Williams: Unfortunately, Mr. Williams was recently executed in the State of Missouri. He is one of countless Black men who was likely wrongly convicted because of racist practices by the then prosecutor and subsequent racist practices by current day politicians refusing to look more closely at his case. Dr. Lisa asks if innocence even matters when it comes to state-sanctioned violence.
Phase 3: California's Public Apology: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a formal apology for California’s complicity in the enslavement of Africans. Several reparation adjacent bills were also signed into law. However, the adjoining process for providing cash reparations and other financial support has been sketchy at best. The U.S. is not known for many apologies – although there have been some, including President Obama's apology for slavery and Jim Crow laws in 2008.
Referenced in the show:
The Case for Reparations - Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Atlantic June 2014
A timeline of the events in the Marcellus Williams case
California Will Formally Apologize for Being Complicit in Slavery - NYT
Five Times the United States Officially Apologized - The Smithsonian
