The San Francisco Board of Supervisors expressed support for reparation payments to Black residents at a public hearing held today as part of the San Francisco Reparations Plan.

The African American Reparations Advisory Committee (AARAC), the city's designated reparations task force, gave presentations stating the 111 recommendations it proposed in a draft report published in December of 2022. The report detailed grievances from within the San Francisco Black community, ranging from health and education issues to the need for institutional policy reform.

Several supervisors, including Board President Aaron Peskin, attested to the importance of distributing reparations to Black people in San Francisco. Supervisor Dean Preston, who presides over District 5 and is of Jewish ancestry, spoke of how his own family received reparations from the German government in the 1950’s. He claimed it was these funds that gave him the “chance of financial success.”

The report recommends a lump-sum payment of $5 million dollars be made to eligible individuals, as well asks for the establishment of debt-relief programs and increased access to affordable housing.

“Centuries of harm should be met with centuries of repair,” AARAC Chair Eric McDonnell said. “This is not a one and done, we have collective work to do to put folks back on the right path.”

Several of the AARAC’s recommendations have been met with significant backlash. Supervisor Shamann Walton, who crafted the reparation legislation, cited the “disgustingly” racist comments and threats his office has received over the idea.

Those who oppose the idea of reparations in San Francisco believe the cost of doing so would worsen the economic deficit the city is already facing. The AARAC, however, insists that something must be done to address the disproportionate amount of Black people affected by economic hardships in the city. According to CBS, Black residents make up 6% of the city’s population, yet are nearly 40% of the homeless population.

“It is not a matter of whether or not there is a case for reparations for black people here in San Francisco,” Supervisor Walton said. “It is a matter of what reparations will and should look like.”

The hearing also allocated time for public comments, in which several members of the public urged the Board to not just speak words in support of reparations but vote in favor of it when the time comes.

Erica Burrell, a member of the public who called out supervisors who were distracted by their cell phones during public comments said: “Reparations are not a handout, it’s an unpaid bill starting to be paid and the only way to begin to right some of the injustices done against Black people in this country.”

The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted in favor of accepting the AARAC draft as part of the San Francisco Reparations Plan.

It is expected to deliver a full, finalized version of its report to Mayor London Breed and the Board of Supervisors in June.

*This article was written as part of the JOUR 300GW: Reporting course at San Francisco State University