A coalition of 76 Japanese and Asian American organizations joined forces Wednesday to call for the formation of a Presidential Commission to study Black reparations to address the injustice of slavery.
The National Nikkei Reparations Coalitions sent their demand in a form of a letter to the Biden Administration calling for action by the end of this year.
The Coaltion formed with the knowledge that in 1988 the government approved reparations for Japanese Americans incarcerated solely because of their ethnicity in World War II.
“Meaningful reparations are long overdue. We will fight until Black Americans receive the reparations and justice they are owed,” said Emily Akpan, co-lead organizer for NNRC, in a statement sent to AsAmNews.
The founding members of the coalition include Nikkei Progressives (NP), Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), and Tsuru for Solidarity (TFS).
“The travesty of slavery and its aftermath must be addressed if we are to truly become the great nation that we profess to be,” said JACL National President, Larry Oda. ” Time is of the essence, there is an urgency of instituting such a study before another year passes. This legislation was first introduced over 30 years ago and its time has come.”
A similar commission was established in 1980 for Japanese American reparations which became reality by 1988. The following year, an act was introduced to establish a commission for reparations for African Americans and its been introduced every year since without success.
Despite the support of 216 members of Congress and over 350 champion organizations, that commission has yet to be established.
“It is quite frankly disgraceful that our country has yet to make full reparations for the government sanctioned and enforced practice of slavery in our country followed by years of Jim Crow, “ said JACL Executive Director, David Inoue.
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