California governor Gavin Newsom signed a new law on Thursday, formally apologizing for slavery and its effects on Black Americans in the state.
As per the news agency AP, this law is part of a series of reparations bills aimed at addressing racial disparities that have persisted for decades.
“The State of California accepts responsibility for the role we played in promoting, facilitating, and permitting the institution of slavery, as well as its enduring legacy of persistent racial disparities,” Governor Newsom said in a statement.
Earlier, Newsom vetoed a bill that would have helped Black families reclaim or receive compensation for property taken through eminent domain. This bill could not take full effect because another bill to create a reparations agency was blocked.
Though California has made significant progress, there was no legislation this year for direct payments to African Americans, disappointing some advocates. However, Newsom approved a budget in June that included up to $12 million for reparations legislation.
Additionally, Newsom has signed laws to improve outcomes for students of colour in K-12 career education programs. Another proposal to ban forced labour as a crime punishment will be on the ballot in November.
State assembly member Isaac Bryan, a Democrat from Culver City, authored a bill to increase oversight over books banned in state prisons. The new law allows the Office of the Inspector General to review and assess the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reasons for banning certain books.
“We need transparency in this process,” Bryan said. “We need to know what books are banned, and we need a mechanism for removing books off of that list.”
California, although entering the union as a free state in 1850, implemented policies that hindered Black people from owning homes and starting businesses. According to a state reparations task force report, Black families faced terrorism, aggressive policing, and pollution in their neighbourhoods.
While efforts to study reparations at the federal level have stalled, states like Illinois and New York and cities like Boston and New York City have taken steps to study reparations. Evanston, Illinois, launched a program providing housing assistance to Black residents for past discrimination.