Sources:
Anderson, S.E. The Black Holocaust for Beginners. New York: Writers and
Readers Publishing, 1995. Bittkcr, Boris. The Case for Black Reparations. New York: Random House, 1973. Franklin, John Hope. From Slavery to Freedom, New York: Knopf, 1947. Taylor, Yuval, ed. / was Bom a Slave (vol. 1). Chicago: Lawrence Hill, 1999. Updike, John. Brazil. New York: Knopf, 1994. Westley. Robert, “Many Billions Gone.” Boston College Law Review, June 1999.
ENGAGING THE TEXT
1. Outline Robinson’s economic argument for reparations: What measurable monetary losses have African Americans suffered as a result of slavery and discrimination? Are there losses that cannot be measured in economic terms? If so, how might they be redressed?
2. How does Robinson counter the objection that it’s too late to demand resti¬tution for slavery? What evidence does he present to support his con-tention that African Americans today still feel the effects of slavery? How persuasive do you find his reasoning?
3. Why does Robinson feel that it’s important for African Americans to fight for reparations even when there’s little chance of success?
4. Robinson cites a number of historical and legal precedents for reparations. In what ways are these cases similar to or different from the case of slavery? To what extent do the precedents strengthen Randall’s argument?
5. Debate Robinson’s claim that unless the United States addresses the issue of reparations, “there is no chance that America can solve its racial prob-lems” (para. 10).
EXPLORING CONNECTIONS
6. What does Robinson mean when he says that “the biggest part of our problem is inside us” (para. 16)? How might Claude M. Steele (p. 231), Ken Hambliit (p. 384), Shelby Steele t~ Gncu “liter Mosley (p. 755) respond to his age inflicted on African
What motivates the creation of racial categories? In the following selec-tion, Vincent Parrillo reviews several theories that seek to explain the motives for prejudiced behavior—from socialization theory to economic competition.
As Parrillo indicates, prejudice cannot be linked to any single cause: a whole network of forces and frustrations underlies this complex set of feelings and behaviors. Parrillo (h. 1938) chairs the Department of Sociology at William Paterson College in New Jersey. His books include Rethinking Today’s Mi-norities (1991). Diversity in America (1996), and Understanding Race and; j Ethnic Relations (2002). He has also written and produced two award-winning documentaries for PBS television. This excerpt originally appeared in Strangers to These Shores (1999, 6th ed.).
Prejudicial attitudes may be either positive