Duke University economists William Darity Jr. and Kirsten Mullen wrote a report in which they proposed that $12 trillion be set aside as reparations. That would be paid to Americans who have ancestors who were enslaved. The report was written for The Roosevelt Institute. It called for around $10 trillion to $12 trillion to be paid to all African American households. That would amount to $800,000 for each household. According to the report, the “US government—the culpable party—must pay the debt. Ultimately, respect for black Americans as people and as citizens—and acknowledgment, redress, and closure for the history and financial hardship they have endured—requires monetary compensation.”

The proposal has been rejected by conservative experts, citing that paying such a large amount for reparations would hinder the economic growth of the country. A fellow from the Cato Institute said that this is hardly the time to take on such a cost. The price of dealing with the pandemic is causing a great deal of strain and the economy has taken its greatest hit in history. Paying trillions to a specific portion of the population could bring ruin to the United States economy.

There is also uncertainty as to how the reparations can be distributed properly. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson has some doubts about the mechanism to be used for paying back African Americans. “What I would say about reparations is, you know, show me a mechanism that works. You know, I did my DNA analysis. OK. I’m 77% sub-Saharan African, 20% European, 3% Asian. So how do you proportion that out to everybody?”

Carson pointed out that it would not work out as it would be impossible to determine who should be paid what amount. “I would much rather concentrate on how we provide the opportunities for people to get into a better economic situation now,” he added.

There has been an increasing demand for reparations together with calls to defund the police. The problem with that is it will be giving compensation to people who did not suffer from slavery while punishing those who had nothing to do with it. Most whites who are alive today do not even have ancestors who owned slaves. Reparations are highly unrealistic and unnecessary. It will only serve to divide the country even further and that is exactly what the leftists want. They aim to dismantle everything that stands for America.