AMERICAN DESCENDANTS OF SLAVERY

Citizen Advisory

June 11, 2019

Representative Stephen Cohen from Tennessee tweeted that The Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties would be hosting a hearing on Congressional Bill HR40, Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act, to be held on June 19, 2019.  This tweet was subsequently followed up by a tweet from Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas which engaged John Legend. Although these tweets do help Citizens engage with Congressional Members, the “Actions” tab at congress.gov makes no mention of this hearing date, there is also no mention of the hearing date on the “Hearings” tab at judiciary.house.gov as of the drafting of this correspondence. We respectfully ask that you reschedule the Hearing to another date and allow for adequate public advanced noticed in the name of transparency.

The significance of June 19th in American History, is representative of the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of the institution of slavery in the United States. Major General Gordon Granger of the Union Army arrived in Galveston Texas with the news that the Civil War had ended and that enslaved peoples were free – this occurred June 19th 1865, two and a half years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This celebration culminates into various events and reflection within ADOS communities across the United States.  One such event is the Angela Project, a 3-Year Movement Commemorating the 400th Anniversary of Black Enslavement in America, culminating this year June 19th, 2019.  Dr. Kevin Cosby of Simmons College of Kentucky, Yvette Carnell founder of Breaking Brown, and Antonio Moore founder of Tone Talks, will all be celebrating Juneteenth at the Angela Project 2019.  Each voice an expert in their own right have inspired a call to action of American Descendants of Slavery to engage with Congressional Members, Senators, and local government to advocate for HR40 and Reparations Policy that will effectively address the multigenerational ills steeped within the ADOS community by perverse anti-Negro legislation that existed at the Federal and State level. As ADOS and as American Citizens, we seek to reclaim and restore the critical national character of the “African American” identity and experience, grounded in our unique lineage, which is central to our continuing struggle for social and economic justice in the United States. Without full participation of Cosby, Carnell, and Moore at the scheduled hearings, we feel that our voices will not be well represented.

It is also our belief that the following modifications to HR40 as written should be addressed prior to any Subcommittee Hearing, note these recommendations in no way encompass all possible recommendations that might be given with adequate public notification from the Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties:

• Targeted dates of the Commission’s investigation are 1776 to present.
• Commissioners
  • Experts: American History, Constitutional Law, Real Estate Law, Political Science, Sociology, Psychology, US Governmental Treaties, Data Analyst, Investigative Reporter and/ or Researcher, Economics, Education Administrator (K-12 & Collegiate), Environmental Hazard Mapping, Financial Lending Policy, Realtor Historian, Military Human Resources, Tax Accountant and/ or Lawyer, City Planner and/ or Urban Planner, Equity Fund Manager, Prison Advocate, Medical Doctor, Gang Intervention Specialist, Civil Rights Litigator, Business Law Attorney.
  • Recommended Experts: Yvette Carnell, Antonio Moore, Dr. Kevin Cosby, Dr. Tracey McCarthy, Dr. Joy DeGruy, Dr. Claud Anderson, Paul Kiel (ProPublica), Octavius Ted Reid (Morgan Stanley), Darrell Miller (Fox Rothschild), Michelle Alexander (Civil Rights Attorney), Mehrsa Baradaran, Joshua Poe (Urban Planner), Professor James Smalls, Fabian Pfeiffer (Institute for Social Research), Alexandra Killewald (Harvard), Dr. Cornel West, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Kirsten Delegard (Mapping Prejudice), Ryan Mattke (Mapping Prejudice)
  • Civilian Advocates: There should be members of this commission from ADOS communities to have average Citizens participate.

We respectfully ask that you reschedule the Hearing to another date and allow for adequate public advanced notice in the name of transparency in addition to the changes to the Commission as noted above. We also encourage anyone that signs this document to let their Congressional Representative know why.

 

Sincerely,

ADOS California                                                     ADOS South Carolina

ADOS Alabama                                                      ADOS Indiana

ADOS District of Columbia                                     ADOS Kentucky

ADOS Pennsylvania                                               ADOS Virginia

ADOS Florida                                                         ADOS Georgia

ADOS North Carolina                                             ADOS Illinois

ADOS New York                                                     ADOS Ohio

ADOS Massachusetts                                            ADOS Texas

ADOS Michigan                                                      ADOS New Jersey

ADOS Louisiana                                                     ADOS Mississippi