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RIVERSIDE, CA—- On Friday April 21, 2023, the city of Riverside became the first city in the Inland Empire to hold a Reparations Town Hall. The Town Hall was put on by the Riverside County Black Chamber of Commerce as part of a two-day event focused on educating the public on the news of Reparations for African Americans in California.
The event was a debrief of the progress of Congressional Bill AB3121, enacted in September 2020, which established a nine-member Task Force to study and develop a recommendation for Reparations in California.
Following the educational portion of the event was a one-hour Q & A for the audience to get information on the questions they had about Reparations in California.
This historic event was the first of many to be held as part of the Social Economic Justice Advocacy program started by the Riverside County Black Chamber of Commerce.
The second day of this two-day event was the Reparations Listening Session on April 22, 2023. This event also briefly discussed the progress of the Reparations movement in California. However, the major undertaking of the day was the Listening Session itself. Not only was this session the first held in the Riverside but also the first accessible for those located in the Inland Empire.
The session gave powerful insight on the history of personal injustices experienced by several of the attendees due to race disparities in California following slavery.
The session wrapped up with a few words of encouragement for the audience as well as a call to action on the importance of staying educated and involved with the Reparations Movement.
