The future of freedom: Reparations after 400 years

Live Captions:

The year 2019 represented the 400th anniversary of the forced arrival of enslaved Africans in the English colonies at Point Comfort, Virginia in 1619. In the history of the African-American experience throughout this period there have been many gains in the liberation of the formerly enslaved. However, with the continuation of the conditions of structural impoverishment and systemic and violent racism, the ultimate liberation for African-Americans remains to be realized. In the event, “The Future of Freedom: Reparations after 400,” a distinguished panel of scholars will consider what the question of reparations means for this freedom’s fulfillment and what kind of future could follow for African-Americans beyond 400.

Panelists

• Katherine M. Franke, Professor of Law at Columbia University, and director of the Center for Gender and Sexuality Law.
• Jovan Scott Lewis, Assistant Professor of Geography and African-American Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.
• Michael Ralph, Associate Professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis and the School of Medicine at New York University.

Moderator

• Bertrall Ross, Chancellor’s Professor of Law UC Berkeley

This event was originally scheduled for April 2020 as part of UC Berkeley's 400 Years of Resistance to Slavery and Injustice event series, but was postponed due to the covid-19 crisis. For recordings of past events and other resources related to the #400Years initiative visit its website here.