40 Acres and a Mule

Beginning in the 1500’s Africans were being involuntary taken from their homes and families to different nations to live as slaves. Eventually, about 6% of those Africans made it to America (Anonymous). These human beings were bided on, and sold into a life of enslavement. They were frequently separated from their families, raped, killed, beaten, and not given human rights. Slaves were ultimately considered property instead of people. In 1865 the House passed the 13th amendment making it illegal to own slaves except through legal penalty for misconduct (National). Yet, the consequences of slavery continue to live on.

“Reparations in Theory and Practice” by Lisa Magarrell describes reparations as, “essential to any transitional justice initiative. This is in part because, out of all the dimensions of transitional justice, reparations focus most directly and explicitly on the victims’ situation, as it seeks to provide some repair for rights that have been trampled, for harms suffered, for indignities endured” (p. 1). The attempted reparation when slavery was dissolved in America was a promise of 40 acres and a mule to every past slave; land in both Georgia and Carolina were kept for that specific purpose (NPR). The effort would have been a collective effort for all slaves to receive reparation. As Magarrell states, collective reparation programs are focused on groups that have been harmed from “human right violations” (p. 5). There were no administrative programs offered to help the next generations of slave decedents. Gen. William Sherman was supposed to administer the 40 acres and the mule, but no policy, outlining the specific victims was ever drawn up: defining the exact harm or extent of harm that took place. The benefits would attempt to be both material and symbolic in that they would both compensate, but point out the harms of a people. The 13th amendment was the first step in restoring justice, the promise for land, and finally the apology by the senate “150 years after the start of the civil war” (Becker).

The limitations of 40 acres and a Mule was that it was offering monetary damages prior to symbolic compensation. At the time of the 13th amendment, there was no real apology for the harms suffered. Without complete acceptance of responsibility, the reparation promise did not hold true. Eventually, the government decided to go back on their promise of reparations.

In “Indigenous Peoples and Reparations Claims: Tentative Steps in Peru and Guatemala” Rubio-Marín described the limitations in the reparation efforts of Peru. Reparations from the CVR were postponed to the Asháninkas and those living in the Andean mountains because of the lack of a proper registry (Rubio- Marín, p. 2). I believe that the same limitations happen nationally and internationally. Victims need compensation quickly, while it takes time to repair what has already been damaged. It is also difficult to make sure the proper reparations have been set forth. That is when groups like the TFV are needed. The TFV is a program that has been operating since 2002, monitoring the payment of reparations. Unfortunately, when slavery was abolished there was no such groups, and therefore, there was no one to make sure the promises made were upheld (TFV).

Unfortunately, the attempted reparation by the US for American slavery is often considered unsuccessful. Because 40 acres and a mule was promised but not given, trust was never rebuilt. It has been so long, there is trouble in figuring out what people should be held responsible, and what people should be considered “victims” (NPR). Legally, corporations that once profited from American slaves should be held liable, but who would they pay reparation to? The National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America has debated and continues their debate on reparations still unpaid to slaves’ descendants. Many people considered the apology made by the Senate belated, and said it lacked the necessary restitutions owed (Becker).

IMAGE REFERENCES
These images were taken by me at a Plantation in Louisiana. One photo is of the main home, and the other is of the slave home. The slave homes often held more than 2-3 families per home. There is no furniture in the slave housing; they often slept on the porch.

REFERENCES

Anonymous. (n.d.). Slavery in the united states. Retrieved from http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/wahl.slavery.us

Becker, B. (2009). Senate approves slavery apology, with reparations disclaimer. Retrieved from http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/18/senate-approves-slavery-apology-with-reparations-disclaimer/

Magarrell, L. (2005). Reparations in theory and practice1. International Center for Transitional Justice, 1-15.

NPR. (2011). Making amends debate continues over reparations for u.s. slavery. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/010827.reparations.html

National Archives. 13th amendment to the u.s. constitution: abolition of slavery. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/document.html?doc=9&title.raw=13th%20Amendment%20to%20the%20U.S.%20Constitution%3A%20Abolition%20of%20Slavery

Rubio-Marín, R, Bailey, C, & Guillerot, J. (2009). Indigenous peoples and reparations claims: tentative steps in peru and guatemala. International Center for Transitional Justice, 1-4.

TFV. (n.d.). The trust fund for victims. Retrieved from http://trustfundforvictims.org/homepage