Meeting Date: April 11th, 2022 05:30
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 11, 2020
Contact: Jordan Redell
(802) 503-7664
Reparations Task Force to Hold First Meeting
Burlington, VT – Mayor Weinberger has called the first meeting of the Reparations Task Force, which will take place today, November 11, at 5:00 pm. Information about the virtual meeting and the agenda can be found here.
Members of the Task Force are:
- Pablo Bose, Professor of Geography at the University of Vermont
- Hal Colston, State Representative, Director of Partnership for Change
- Tyeastia Green, City of Burlington Director of Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
- Christine Hughes, New Seasons Vermont and Racial Justice Alliance
- Rebecca Zietlow, Professor of Law and Values at the University of Toledo College of Law
“I am proud that Burlington is the first City in the country to examine and account for the role it has played in the foundational injustice of chattel slavery and the responsibility of repairing its harm,” said Mayor Weinberger. “A shameful chapter of the long, terrible history of slavery and its aftermath is that for over 30 years, Congress has refused to even study the possibility of reparations, despite annual resolutions calling for that examination.
“As reported this week in the New York Times story about new details of Alexander Hamilton’s history with slavery, very little is known about slavery in northern states. My hope for this Task Force is that it will begin to reveal and bring to light inaccuracies in the way we have understood Vermont’s relationship to slavery and this part of American history.
“While I don’t know where this study will take us, because the City’s role in the institution of slavery and what is right for us to do in response is not yet clear, I do know that we will never fully realize the ideals of our country until the issue of reparations is fully addressed. The formation of this task force is an important step toward that crucial goal.”
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