Massachusetts Town Creates Fund To Pay Reparations To Eligible Black Residents

A town in Massachusetts has created a fund to pay reparations to Black members of the community.

A town is taking on the responsibility of the U.S. government by starting a fund to give reparations to Black residents to “repair past harms” white people have committed against Black people. According to the New York Post, in a 12 to 1 vote earlier this week, the Amherst Town Council decided to establish a reparations fund. While no money has been placed in the fund just yet, officials for the town’s finances announced a plan to put $210,000 in it later this year.

Amherst is about 90 miles from Boston, with a population of more than 39,000 people. Black people make up over 2,1000 of its residents. Michele Miller, the co-founder of the local advocacy group Reparations for Amherst, said the reparations fund was the best move to make to build equity.

“Amherst will become a reason for other communities and our federal government to take long-overdue action,” Miller told local TV station 22News “And your actions will lay the foundation for our community to begin a collaborative healing process.”

Black residents who are eligible to receive the funds have to have had ancestors who lived in the city between 1919 and 1969.