Providence Mayor Jorge O. Elorza’s commitment to racial reparations for Black and Indigenous residents has created more questions than answers.
The recently signed executive order outlines a three-part program of “truth-telling” or education, reconciliation and reparations. But exactly what reparations would mean – direct payments, city programs, policy changes, or something else – and who would qualify, is unclear.
Elorza said in an email to Providence Business News that he was open to community recommendations, and that it was important to start the process rather than have a defined “end product.” But others have very specific ideas about what should or should not happen.
Direct payments alone are a “nonstarter,” said Maureen Moakley, a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Rhode Island. “Giving people a check for $2,000 is not systemic reform.”
Government payments made to Japanese Americans interned during World War II and the families of Black people killed in a 1923 massacre in Rosewood, Fla., were also small and more symbolic than actually impactful for recipients, said Diana Hassel, a law professor at Roger Williams University School of Law.
Moakley instead named programs such as scholarships, job opportunities and education funding as the kind of constructive initiatives that should constitute reparations. She stressed the need to capitalize on the momentum of the racial justice movement to create real change, adding that the upcoming presidential election may undermine the chance for systemic reform, as candidates drive up racial tensions to further their own political agendas.
“Even if the most minimal program came out of this, it’s [a] step in the right direction,” Moakley said.
Elorza said it was important to “put a marker in the ground” regarding the city’s commitment, and to let the voices of Black and Indigenous communities lead the way.
Providence City Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris disagreed. In a statement, Harris cautioned against the city overpromising and under-delivering, noting that reparations “better be capable of generationally shifting the plight of an entire community.”
While Harris told PBN she was open to starting a conversation about tax breaks or other programs for the city’s Black community, she was uncomfortable with the mayor’s decision to issue an executive order.
“That’s a very powerful move,” she said, adding that “there could be real changes made, but I don’t believe that was something really well-thought-out and presented to the people.”
Ultimately, the mayor cannot enact any reparations program, policy or funding unilaterally. At minimum, he needs approval from the City Council. Whether the question should also go before voters in a ballot initiative depends on the specifics of the proposal, Hassel said.
About 80% of the 51 people who had voted in a PBN online poll as of July 22 said they did not support the mayor’s executive order because it lacked detail and that elected officials should not decide for voters how to allocate taxpayer funds. Harris agreed that any programs using public funding should go before voters.
Elorza acknowledged the process will be difficult, and the idea needed support from lawmakers and other stakeholders. “Led by the moral impulse to do what is right, I am sure we will overcome the many challenges that we will face,” Elorza said.
Nancy Lavin is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Lavin@PBN.com.
