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High Point could become the next North Carolina city to explore reparations for its Black and minority populations should city officials approve a local push to kickstart a reparations commission.
High Point commissioners plan to consider formally establishing a reparations commission when they next meet on Sept 20. The city's Prosperity and Livability Commission previously voted to recommend that commissioners create the committee.
"It will do the work of ... addressing the ills that have been done in High Point," said NAACP of High Point Branch President James Adams, who added that injustices go beyond slavery to include Jim Crow and community redlining, among other things. "We're just asking for a time that we can right the wrongs."
High Point's NAACP Chapter is spearheading the push for a reparations committee.
"We've presented a resolution to High Points city council to establish a reparations committee ... to repair generations of harm," reads an official statement from High Point's NAACP webpage.
In recent years, the concept of reparations has become a mainstream talking point, with presidential candidates addressing the matter during primetime debates and interviews. While what constitutes reparations differs from person to person, most agree it should, in some way, address centuries of systemic inequities.
"It's very easy to sit down and say, 'You did this, this and this so we want this, this and this,'" Adams said. "But if something is offered, will it help?"
Adams emphasized his belief that reparations aren't necessarily monetary in nature, but could be.
"People get scared because they think you want to take money out of their pockets," Adams said. "That's not the case."
Adams said now was the perfect time to pursue this project, largely because of the makeup of the town's population.
"There are more descendants of slaves here today than were here years ago," Adams said, in reference to High Point's sizeable black population relative to other North Carolina communities.
Based on recent Census data, African American's make up 35.9% of High Point's population, slightly higher than Guilford County's 35.4% and the state's 22.2%.
If approved, High Point will have the largest percentage of black residents relative to other communities exploring reparations in the state. Asheville, which found itself in the national spotlight after announcing its own reparations project, has a black population percentage of 11.2% while Mecklenburg County, which recently approved a $2 million budget line item for equity investments, has a population in which African Americans make up 33%.
Mebane, with a population of 24.7% of African Americans, is one of the more recent cities to establish a committee geared toward bringing to light matters of equity.
"We need to make sure that we are doing the right thing and the right thing for all people," Mebane Mayor Ed Hooks said. "It's what this committee is hopefully going to do to help us see where the right way to go is."
Adams said his NAACP chapter planned for pursuing a reparations commission for two years. During that time they paid close attention to other communities engaged in similar equity work.
"In this process, we take a look at other municipalities, both their work and the direction they are going," Adams said. "I don't think it could have been possible 10 or 15 years ago but I don't know of any municipality that tried this 10 or 15 years ago. The process had to start somewhere."
Adams said addressing these topics can be difficult but he hopes that city officials aren't daunted by the prospect of doing the work.
"It has its challenges but a project worth anything has challenges," Adams said. "This is a great beginning for a city...to be able to bring this about."
Dean-Paul Stephens covers racial justice. Follow him on Twitter @DeanPEStephens. If you have tips, send an email to dstephens@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Times-News: High Point officials might create NAACP-requested reparations commission
