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Reparations In South Africa: A Cautionary Tale, Erin Daly

Erin Daly

The South African experience with reparations is an important object lesson for any major effort to seek reparations to the descendents of slaves in the United States. However, the aspect of the TRC's reparations plan that has proved most problematic is the recommendation for monetary payments to "victims" of gross human rights abuses. Although emphasizing the importance of reparations to the victims, the TRC failed to ensure that reparations would be paid. Like the victims’ movements in South Africa, the American movement for reparations for victims and descendants of slavery should a range of monetary as well as non-monetary forms …