Elham Ataeiazar for Make It
As we honor Juneteenth as an official federal holiday for the first time, many are calling attention to conversations about reparations and the need to close the racial wealth gap for Black Americans.
Prior to the Covid-19 crisis and its disproportionate impact on communities of color, the median white household in America held nearly eight times the wealth of the median Black household in 2019, reports Brookings Institution.
While President Biden and his administration have unveiled plans to help close this gap, which has only been exacerbated by the pandemic, many people have also called on corporate America and its leaders to take a stand in speaking out against racial inequality and economic injustice.
Some leaders, like BET and RLJ Companies founder Robert Johnson, have openly talked about the need for reparations to help compensate Black Americans for years of slavery and unpaid labor. Other leaders, like The ActONE Group founder and CEO Janice Bryant Howroyd, have spoken about alternative solutions to reparations that still ensure Black communities are getting the proper resources and economic support needed to build wealth.
CNBC Make It reached out to Johnson, Bryant Howroyd and three other Black business leaders to get their insight on reparations, economic justice and the role corporate America plays in closing the racial wealth gap.
You can scroll down or jump directly to the following sections by clicking on their names:
Robert Johnson: Founder of BET and RLJ Companies
John Hope Bryant: Chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE
Janice Bryant Howroyd: Founder and CEO of The ActONE Group
Kevin Cohee: Chairman and CEO of OneUnited Bank
Michael Hyter: President and CEO of The Executive Leadership Council
Robert Johnson
Founder of BET and RLJ Companies
I called for a $14 trillion reparations payment for two specific reasons. The first reason is it would help to close the wealth gap between Black and white Americans which was fundamentally caused by slavery. [Slavery] deprived Black Americans of the financial benefits of their labor and was compounded in denying access to capital by over 200 years of systemic economic discrimination.
The second reason is for white Americans to express their request for forgiveness and manifest their atonement to Black Americans to show that they believe that Black Americans deserve both an apology and a payment for the country’s failure to live up to its founding principles of equality, due process under law, and the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness without any form of racial discrimination.
The specific benefit of financial reparations would give Black Americans access to capital which is the primary driver necessary to achieve economic success and to build sustainable wealth. In my proposal, each Black American would receive $350,767, which they would use to acquire the same assets of wealth that white Americans have. The key assets would be homeownership, investments in stocks and bonds, investments in retirement savings and education for their children.
On if he believes reparations will receive the political support needed
No. That is why I have called on Congress to enact what I call The BOOST Act. The BOOST Act would invite investors to invest in Black-owned businesses and in return, they would be eligible for preferential tax treatment based on the profitable returns of their investment. Where reparations would be mandatory, The BOOST Act investment would be voluntary and would be an example of wealthy investors doing what they believe is in the best interest of providing Black Americans with access to capital and, therefore, closing the wealth gap.
