|
|
This is only a preview of the paper
Click here to register and get the full text.
Existing members click here to login
|
|
|
How would you feel if a stranger came up to you and demanded that you pay for something that your ancestors took part in? It would probably be a very shocking experience. This is exactly what is occurring in our country right now. Americans all over the country are being asked to essentially “pay back” African-Americans’ for the enslaving of their ancestors. The idea of this reparation for slavery was raised at a joint hearing of the Chicago City Council Finance and Human Relations committees on April 26, 2000 (“40 Acres“). Following the Civil War, a promise by the US government was made to all slaves that they would be compensated with forty acres and a mule to help them begin a new life as non-slaves; however, the promise was never kept (40 acres). As a result, black Americans’ are unrelenting on the idea that they are owed something by the U.S. government. There are many issues that conflict with this plan of action. African Americans’ in today’s society have not experienced the pain and suffering of slavery, and the white Americans’ in today’s society have not inflicted this among them. Not only have African Americans; experienced pain, torture and slavery, but many other groups of people have as well. The idea of reparations is unreasonable due to the facts that slavery ended so long ago, whites and blacks in today’s society were not involved directly, and it is virtually impossible to compensate all African Americans’ in any way for the slavery of their ancestors. Throughout history, slavery, discrimination, and human cruelty have taken place among various cultures. Women, for instance, have always been treated as unequals within this country. In the history of the United States, women have only had the privilege of voting for eighty years. If every man was asked to repay every woman for the hardships her ancestors endured, he would laugh and ridicule the idea. Another example of this would be the fact that white men were once enslaved long ago.
Approximate Word count = 1298
Approximate Pages = 5.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
|
|
|
|
|
|