House neo communists are holding hearings on how to pay reparations to descendants of slaves. It's a dicey subject. Even those of us writing about it opens us up to accusations of racism. There are a couple of schools of thought on this. One is, held by those who are members of the very same political party that held slaves and mounted a rebellion over it that resulted in some 600,000 lives lost, that all Americans owe descendants of slaves reparations. The other is that slaves were freed, there were injustices done and acknowledged, and we all have to move on. Still another position may be that this is just another way for party bosses to buy votes and big government to get bigger.
Senator Corey Booker (D-NJ), who testified on behalf of reparations, found some well-thought-out opposition when former NFL player Burgess Owens took the stand. Ohio-born Owens, who played safety for 10 seasons and won a Super Bowl with the Raiders, has carefully studied how the Black community has fared under progressive liberalism since the start of the 20th Century. He has written books about the Black experience in America under liberalism and how it has turned good men into weak men. He told the House Judiciary Committee that he has traced his own lineage directly to slaves and that his ancestors used hard work to battle their way out of their circumstances following emancipation.
Burgess said, "this is not about black and white, rich or poor, blue collar, white collar. We're fighting for the hearts of our nation...I do not believe in reparation, because what reparation does, it points to a certain race, a certain color, as evil, and it points to another race, my race, as one that has not only become racist, but also beggars...I used to be a Democrat until I did my history and found the misery that party brought to my race...Let's pay restitution. How about the Democratic Party pay for all the misery brought to my race?...And every white American, Republican or Democrat, who feels guilty because of the color of their skin, you can pony up also. Then we can get past reparations and recognize this country has given us greatness." The irony is that the same political spirit that tore apart our nation in 1860 is attempting to do it again today.
In my trips to Ghana, West Africa, where most American slaves originated, many Black American Christians have told me that they are glad they were born in America, rather than to live under the conditions of a developing country in Africa. Our nation is not perfect. We have much to resolve in relating to one another. Sadly, those who are clamoring the loudest about the divisions are the ones perpetuating division. My family was part of the abolitionist movement in Ohio. We have long believed no man should own another as the Golden Rule sees no color. Burgess, in his testimony, scored one for sanity. Galatians 3:28 says, "
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Christ ultimately paid all reparations. Money doesn't heal heart issues. Christ does.
