The city of Asheville, North Carolina becomes the first city in America to approve reparations for the descendants of African slaves.
Officials apologized for the city’s historic role in slavery and discrimination after the City Council voted unanimously to provide reparations to Black citizens on Tuesday.
“Hundreds of years of black blood spilled that basically fills the cup we drink from today,” said Councilman Keith Young, one of two Black council members and the chief architect of the resolution.
“It is simply not enough to remove statues. Black people in this country are dealing with issues that are systemic in nature,” Young said.
The resolution will not provide direct cash payments but it will mandate investments in areas where Black people face disparities, such as home ownership.
Black people will be given the same priorities as whites for bank loans to increase minority business and homeownership, CBS News reports.
The resolution will also close gaps in health care, education and pay for Black people.
The vote comes a month after thousands of protesters called for the Asheville Police Department to be defunded in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis.
