The Metro: What reparations could look like in Detroit

In 2021, Detroit residents voted to create a reparations task force. The goals include creating housing and economic programs to repair harms committed against Black Detroiters who have been city residents for at least 20 years. 

When reparations are discussed, the conversation is often about money. But the recent report released by Detroit’s Reparations Task Force goes well beyond cash payments. 

If what’s laid out is ever implemented, it would radically transform the lives of many Black Detroiters. It would create job opportunities and transform health outcomes. It would remove scarcity and friction in peoples’ daily lives.

It would do so, in part, by creating two city departments: One dedicated to the cultural prosperity of Black residents, and another meant to repair harms created by past government entities, be they national, state and local. 

What are the specific harms the task force seeks to remedy? And, how did constructing such a document change the people who worked on it?

Cidney Calloway, the co-chair of the Detroit Reparations Task Force, joined Robyn Vincent to discuss.