After decades of institutionalized racism and intentional acts of violence, San Francisco is formally apologizing to its Black citizens.
In a recent historic vote, the city’s 11 Board of Supervisors members all agreed to endorse a resolution apologizing to Black citizens and pledging to “the rectification and redress of past policies and misdeeds.”
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According to San Francisco’s legislation, the resolution “apologizes on behalf of the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco to African Americans and their descendants for systemic and structural discrimination, targeted acts of violence, and atrocities.”
Supervisor Shamann Walton expressed gratitude to the African American Reparations Advisory Committee, which creates suggestions for making amends in Black communities, at the meeting and mentioned, “We have much more work to do but this apology most certainly is an important step.”The Board of Supervisors has adopted this resolution as the committee’s initial recommendation.
Supervisor Hillary Ronen considered the large-scale demonstrations that followed George Floyd’s death and the national cry for reform that served as impetus for the official apologies.
Ronen stated, “People in the United States were everywhere all across the country out in the streets and saying enough is enough.” She then added, “It was one of the most exciting moments that I’ve ever gotten to live through because it felt like there was a real fundamental change and reckoning happening.”San Francisco was one of the first big cities to issue an official apology of this type, along with Boston.
One of the biggest reparations campaigns for Black Americans in recent U.S. history was approved by a task committee on state reparations in California in May of 2023.
Task force chair Kamilah Moore stated that the group recommended that qualified Californians be granted atonement under the five categories of reparations recognized by international law: restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction, and assurances of non-repetition.
