California Reparations Panel Approves Historic Payments and Apology for Black Residents

California's reparations task force has approved recommendations for compensating and apologizing to Black residents for generations of harm caused by discriminatory policies. The proposals include a public apology, cash or its equivalent for eligible residents, and the creation of a new agency to provide services to descendants of enslaved people. The recommendations now go to state lawmakers to consider for reparations legislation. Economists estimate that the state could owe upwards of $800 billion in reparations to Black people, but the figure in the latest draft report released by the task force is far lower.