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Steyer Backs Reparations

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October 29, 2019

Presidential candidate Tom Steyer gave his most unequivocal backing yet for reparations in a video uploaded over the weekend.

"In terms of reparations: I'm for reparations, just so you know," he said in the NowThis News candidate forum video.

"Think about this for one sec: 400 years of legalized discrimination and unfairness did the deepest injustice. There's never been an apology. Think—I mean, it's amazing."

The comments are a sharper commitment to the policy than remarks he provided in the summer.

"And I was saying, look, there's no question that there has been injustice, there's no question that we should be addressing it, and the only question is—which is yours—let's have the conversation in public about what's happened," he said in a July interview with CBS News.

"Let's have a conversation in public about the best way to deal with that and undo the injustice."

In an interview in September with the Breakfast Club, a syndicated morning radio show, Steyer appeared to endorse reparations, but in a rather indirect manner.

"I like the fact that people are demanding the candidates have a black agenda," host Charlamagne tha God said. "I love the conversation about reparations."

"I think it's gotta happen," Steyer replied.

"You think reparations happen?" Charlamagne tha God asked, to which Steyer smiled and nodded.

While other Democratic presidential contenders have views on reparations that vary by degree, most support the current version of a bill offered in the House by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D., Texas) that would study the issue and make recommendations.

Requests for comment to the Steyer campaign were not returned.

Published under: 2020 Election , Tom Steyer