The Boston Task Force on Reparations, established through a city ordinance, called on white churches to pay the black community back for racial injustices dating back to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Black and white clergy members met, with the commission urging churches to commit to reparations, including cash payments and support for affordable housing and new financial institutions in black Boston. The commission specifically reached out to Arlington Street Church, Trinity Church, Old South Church, and King’s Chapel, all of which have ties to the 17th and 18th centuries.
During a press conference held at the Resurrection Lutheran Church, religious leaders like Rev. Kevin Peterson and Rev. John E. Gibbons encouraged churches to move beyond researching their history and discussing reparations to taking tangible action. The King’s Chapel congregation is establishing a memorial to those enslaved and a fund for social justice. However, responses from representatives of Trinity Church and Old South Church were not immediately available. Peterson and the commission have demanded a $15 billion payout from the city, which would be dispersed in cash payments, investments in new financial institutions, and funding for racial disparities in education and anti-crime measures. This amount is more than three times the annual budget for fiscal year 2024 in Boston.
Peterson emphasized the need for white churches to publicly atone for the sins of slavery and commit to reparations as a way of extending their great wealth into the black community. The gatherings stressed the urgent need for action, beyond historical acknowledgment. Members of the commission are pushing for monetary compensation for wages and lives lost due to slavery and anti-black institutional oppression. The call for reparations is deeply personal for many, with a social justice director revealing her great-great-grandmother’s enslavement and calling for acknowledgment and financial redress.
King’s Chapel, Arlington Street Church, Trinity Church, and Old South Church were all established centuries ago and have historical ties to slavery. While some churches, like King’s Chapel, are taking steps to honor and support those impacted by slavery, there is a push for urgent action among leaders calling for reparations. The Task Force on Reparations continues to advocate for cash payments, financial investments, and funding for racial equity as part of the $15 billion demand made to the city of Boston. Williams highlighted the long history of black individuals serving their oppressors and called for white churches to recognize the debt owed to the descendants of slavery, emphasizing the need for reparations now.
The Boston Task Force on Reparations, made up of clergy members and community advocates, is calling on white churches to commit to reparations for the black community. Through a press conference and letters to churches with historical ties to slavery, clergy members like Rev. Peterson are advocating for cash payments, affordable housing support, and financial investments. The urgency for action and acknowledgment of past wrongs is emphasized, with demands for a $15 billion payout from the city of Boston to address the legacy of slavery and racial injustices. The focus is on tangible, immediate reparations to address the ongoing impact of historical inequalities and discrimination.
The efforts of the Boston Task Force on Reparations to engage white churches in acknowledging and addressing the racial injustices rooted in the trans-Atlantic slave trade are gaining momentum. Calls for reparations including cash payments, affordable housing support, and financial investments to address racial disparities in education and crime are being made to historical churches in the Boston area. The urgency for action and tangible reparations is clear, with demands for a $15 billion payout from the city to redress the long history of racial inequities in the community. The voices of clergy members, community advocates, and descendants of slavery are coming together to push for meaningful reparations and acknowledgment of past wrongs.
