"Setting aside the logic of that claim for the moment — while noting its similarity to the familiar liberal mantra: “Vote for us, and we’ll give you stuff!” — let us consider the practical question: Who exactly should pay whom?
"Since only the wealthiest people could afford slaves, the legal and moral argument on the subject was academic, not practical, for the vast majority of citizens at the time. That being the case, few among today’s population, even in theory, should have to pay reparations to descendants of slaves.
"According to the 1860 census, on the eve of the Civil War, under four percent of American households owned one or more slaves. That means about ninety-six percent of the population owned none. So the descendants of that ninety-six percent should be off the hook. But what about people whose ancestors were members of slaveholding families yet personally opposed slavery? On the other hand, what about people who would have liked a slave but couldn’t afford one?
"If descendants of slaveholders should foot the bill, who among us today is descended only from former slaveowners? Odds are that after seven generations, it’s nobody. Why should descendants of non-slaveholders be liable financially for the decisions of others? What about those who are fifty percent descended from a slaveholder? Forty-nine?
"The United States government as a whole isn’t liable for slavery; it fought the bloodiest war in its history in part to abolish slavery. It doesn’t owe a dime in reparations to anybody." . . .More
John Perry is a ghostwriter and collaborator, as well as the author of more than a dozen books including Sgt. York: His Life, Legend, and Legacy (Fidelis, 2021). His latest book is The Detroiting of America: What Happened to the Motor City, Why Other Cities Followed, How Detroit is Coming Back
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