Reparations: Give Us the Cash and Let the Results Speak for Themselves by Brent Simon

For generations, descendants of enslaved Africans have been told some version of the same story: work harder, save more, invest wisely, build wealth, pull yourself up by your bootstraps.

Very well.

But before anyone lectures us about bootstraps, perhaps they should first explain how one pulls on boots they were never given.

The transatlantic slave trade was not merely a human tragedy. It was one of the largest transfers of wealth in human history. Millions of Africans were stripped of their labour, their property, their autonomy, and their future. The wealth generated by that unpaid labour helped finance industries, ports, banks, universities, and national economies that continue to prosper today.

The descendants of the enslaved inherited something very different.

That reality lies at the heart of the reparations debate. Yet whenever reparations are discussed, the conversation quickly turns away from the people themselves. We hear proposals for development programmes, institutional support, technical assistance, infrastructure projects, capacity building, and government initiatives.

What we rarely hear is the most obvious question: if wealth was extracted from people, if the suffering  and injustice was happening directly to the people, why should compensation not be paid in that same manner; directly to the peole?

The answer often given is revealing!

Some opponents of reparations argue that direct payments would be wasteful or economically irresponsible. That position is at least understandable. It comes from those who oppose reparations altogether.

More troubling, however, is the growing tendency for our own advocates who make essentially the same argument.

We are told that the descendants of enslaved Africans should not receive direct compensation because they may not know what to do with it. The money, we are assured, would be better managed by governments, commissions, institutions, experts, and programmes.

That mindset does our people a profound injustice.

It suggests that Caribbean people, and the greater diaspora can build nations, operate businesses, cultivate farms, captain fishing vessels, earn degrees, raise families, and contribute to modern economies, yet somehow cannot be trusted with their own reparations.

If that is not paternalism, what is?

The irony is impossible to ignore. We are constantly told that economic success comes from ownership, investment, entrepreneurship, savings, and access to capital. We are told to create wealth, build assets, and take responsibility for our economic future.

Yet when the conversation turns to reparations—the very mechanism through which capital might finally reach descendants of those whose labour built empires—suddenly many become uncomfortable with ordinary people having direct control over that capital.

Why?

Why is a government trusted with millions of dollars, but an individual citizen is not?

Why is a bureaucracy trusted, but a farmer is not?

Why is a consultant trusted, but a fisher is not?

Why is an institution trusted, but a family is not?

At its core, this debate is not really about money. It is about trust and control.

Do we genuinely believe that descendants of enslaved Africans are capable of determining their own economic futures, or do we not?

If the answer is yes, then direct reparations should not be controversial.

Some people will save. Some will invest. Some will start businesses. Some will buy land. Some will educate their children. Some will pay off debt. Some will make poor decisions.

That is true in every society on Earth.

But no group should be denied compensation because someone else has decided they might spend it imperfectly. The descendants of slavery should not have to pass a financial literacy test before receiving justice.

Reparations are not charity. They are not foreign aid. They are not development assistance.

They are compensation.

And compensation belongs first and foremost to those who suffered the loss and to their descendants—not to institutions, agencies, committees, or self-appointed gatekeepers who believe they know better than the people they claim to represent.

Economics teaches a simple lesson: capital creates opportunity. Opportunity creates wealth. Wealth compounds across generations.

That principle helped build the fortunes of nations enriched by slavery.

Perhaps it is time to test the same principle among those who paid the original cost.

For centuries, we have been told to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.

Fine.!

Give us the boots!

Give us the capital!

Then stand back and let the results speak for themselves.

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