. . . and a word on reparations

I've gotten interested in the issue of reparations to African-Americans and other minority groups.   No, not just because I like quixotic causes, but because of the parallel to Holocaust Reparations on which I've previously written.   My recent trip to Russia, which talked briefly about reparations to victims of the purges, famines, etc. but then retreated, also plays a role.

The logic of reparations is more convincing than one might think.  It's pretty clear that black people had their labor and sometimes their lives taken without compensation under slavery and, to a degree, the later Jim Crow laws.   Some have suggested that today's "mass incarceration" is a continuation of this process, although I don't know if anyone's suggested reparations for that.   There are a host of technical questions (who gets paid, how much, etc.) but that's always the case.

The bigger problem is the perverse nature of reparations.  Reparations tend to get paid when either i. the country making the payments was defeated in war (Germany) or ii. circumstances have changed so dramatically than no one seriously defends the original outrage (Japanese-American internment).   It also helps if iii. the offense complained of has been over for a long time and has little chance of being renewed.   When these circumstances don't apply, reparations are much less likely.   To put it more cynically, a large-scale, continuing abuse is often a weaker candidate for reparations than one in the past, because the payments would be larger and the logic reparations would require deeper, ongoing changes in the society in question.

Given this difficulty, the model of transitional or "restorative" justice has considerable appeal.   Instead of punishing transgressors and paying monetary compensation, this model emphasizes the gathering of historical facts and the institution of steps that prevent a recurrence of the original abuse in the future.   The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission is an example of this process.   The Memorial organization in Russia, now under severe pressure from the Government, has sought a similar approach.   The two approaches are not mutually exclusive--South Africa is paying a symbolic amount to some victims of apartheid--but the emphasis is different.

In any event, it's an interesting and provocative issue, and one that makes you rethink the common assumption that America is "better" or "more moral" than other countries.   (Russia used to have more people in prison than we do, but we're way ahead now.)   I'll be thinking and writing more about it in the coming months.