Since 2019, lawmakers and social justice advocates have been urging the state to create a dedicated task force to look at New Jersey’s history of slavery, its continued impact on Black residents and the need for reparations.
But the topic remains controversial in political circles. Instead, the Murphy administration has focused on wealth disparity, examining how structural racism contributes to economic inequities. Reparations are not a novel concept in America. In fact, the U.S. government gave them to Japanese Americans as an apology for incarcerating them during World War II.
NJ Spotlight News’ social justice reporter Taylor Jung looked at renewed calls for reparations to compensate for slavery’s toll on Black Americans and shared her family’s personal story of reparations.
For an in-depth video on Taylor Jung’s own experience and the ongoing push in New Jersey for compensation for Black residents, click here.
