Photo: Kim Tunnicliffe / WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — On Tuesday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu joined other city officials downtown to introduce the ten individuals that are making up the Reparations Task Force, which was formed to study the lasting impact of slavery in the city.
Announced at the Museum of African American History, the members range in age, with some being students in high school or higher education.
- Chair Joseph D. Feaster, Jr., Esq
- Denilson Fanfan.
- L’Merchie Frazier.
- George “Chip” Greenidge, Jr.
- Dr. Kerri Greenidge.
- Dr. David Harris.
- Dorothea Jones.
- Carrie Mays.
- Na’tisha Mills
- Damani Williams
"For four hundred years, the brutal practice of enslavement and recent policies like redlining, the busing crisis, and exclusion from City contracting have denied Black Americans pathways to build generational wealth, secure stable housing, and live freely. Our administration remains committed to tackling long standing racial inequities and this task force is the next step in our commitment as a city to advance racial justice and build a Boston for everyone," Wu said.
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As an attorney and former President of the Boston branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Feaster likens the work the task force will undertake to a mortgage loan.
"If, for instance, the original debtor passes away, I have never seen a lender is no longer owed. They say, the state is responsible for paying that debt— and that's what we're talking about here with this committee," Feaster said.
According to city officials, the task force will launch a request for proposal in the coming weeks to study the legacy of slavery in Boston to produce a report to address potential harms on racial equity.
WBZ's Kim Tunnicliffe (@KimWBZ) reports.
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