Title: Reparation for Slavery
Submitted by:
Nancy D. Barrick (Lay Delegate, St. James' Lafayette Square)
The Rev. Allen F. Robinson
RESOLVED, That pursuant to our baptismal covenant to “strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being,” as well as to our Diocese's commitment to remove the sin of racism from its midst, the Convention of the Diocese of Maryland, meeting May 7-8, 2004, call for diocesan-wide education and discussion for at least the next year, to be led by the diocesan Anti-Racism Task Force, or a special task force appointed to encourage and oversee such education and discussion, on the issue of restitution / reparation to African Americans whose ancestors were enslaved in this land for nearly 250 years; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Anti-Racism Task Force, or such special task force as may be appointed to oversee the discussion of restitution/reparation, report to the Diocesan Convention in 2005 a sense of the mind of the Diocese of Maryland on the issue of restitution for slavery, together with a suitable model for a process of repentance, reparation and reconciliation, to be undertaken in the Diocese of Maryland and commended to the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2006.
EXPLANATION
The unpaid labor of four million Africans generated wealth in this country for over 250 years. Since emancipation, the advantage of that wealth and privilege has continued to benefit those of European descent and those of African descent still experience a disadvantaged stake in the American way of life. Lack of access to the “white” legacies of wealth, education, good health, housing and every other aspect of life in which social and cultural institutions impact upon one's well-being, have caused disproportionate suffering to the descendants of African slaves with regard to their spiritual, cultural, economic, social and educational development. This suffering is directly linked to the slavery of their ancestors. The time has come for the church to address these injustices through serious, informed, faith-based discussions on the sin of slavery and on the possibility of reparations.
A resolution in support of a national congressional commission to study the feasibility of restitution for the slavery of Africans in America was not adopted by the 2003 General Convention of the Episcopal Church. Looking forward to a new resolution to be submitted to the 2006 General Convention, several dioceses are undertaking study and discussion as proposed here to the Diocese of Maryland.
(Resource information for this resolution is from THE WITNESS Magazine, Volume 85, Number 12, December 2002.)