Controversial far-left activism group Black Lives Matter is demanding “Reparations NOW” and urging American companies to pressure the federal government to comply.
“We want, deserve, and are owed reparations,” the Marxist organization declared in a Medium post.
“This year, on the first anniversary of Juneteenth’s designation as a federal holiday, it is imperative that our economy, government, and society demonstrate a true commitment to black emancipation,” the group adds.
BLM also posted the statement on Twitter Sunday amid the Juneteenth celebrations.
Reparations NOW.
— Black Lives Matter (@Blklivesmatter) June 19, 2022
Last year, Democrat President Joe Biden signed legislation to make Juneteenth, which falls on June 19, a federal holiday.
BLM suggests that “corporations can and must pave the way for reparations in this country.”
“Today, we call upon the same companies who rapidly rallied behind the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020: Step into the fullness of your financial positioning and power,” BLM declares.
“Act on your claims to value black life via holistic reparations for black communities and push for reparations.
“While we are not opposed to Juneteenth recognition, we ARE opposed to corporate America using black pain, black joy, black victories, and black history as an opportunity to expand their pockets without investing back into OUR communities.
“Stop exploiting our holiday,” BLM writes.
Black Lives Matter argues that reparations are required because of slavery, but that slavery is not the sole issue.
“We demand that American corporations reckon with how they may have profited from slavery and take concrete steps that go beyond mere feel-good public relations efforts,” BLM notes.
“American companies should announce their public support for reparations immediately.
“We know that many corporations have benefited from the legacy and continued oppression of black people, and therefore they must do their part in making true reparations.
“We demand reparations for African-descended people in the United States and beyond.
“While we prioritize the demand for reparations for slavery, we do not limit our demand for reparations to slavery,” BLM writes.
“We believe demanding reparations only for slavery erases the reality that the United States has continued to exploit and harm black people through convict leasing, sharecropping, Jim Crow, redlining, and other policies of structural discrimination and exclusion, and mass criminalization and incarceration through policies such as the ‘war on drugs.'”
