Question: What does this really mean in very simple English terms: Racism has caused tremendous harm to many racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Many argue that in order to advance equity, this harm merits a response. One proposed solution involves providing compensation for victims of racism. Reparations refer to the act of repairing damage and providing restitution for past harms. One example of reparations in the United States is the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which acknowledged that a great injustice had been committed against Japanese Americans when they were interned during World War II. The act mandated that Congress pay each living victim of internment $20,000 in reparations. Photograph of the Poston, Arizona Relocation Camp for Japanese-Americans by Hikaru Iwasaki, 1945. Figure: "Poston, Arizona Relocation Camp for Japanese-Americans" (CC PDM 1.0; (Hikaru Iwasaki) pingnews.com via Flickr) Although most of the discussion around reparations is focused on the financial aspect, it is important to note that there are other very important components to a program of reparations. The first of these is recognition. Recognition involves society's acknowledgment of the anger, hurt, injustice and material loss caused by racism, and how these wrong doings continue to affect people's lives today (Yamamoto, 2009). This recognition extends to the specific experiences of racial and ethnic groups in the United States, such as how African Americans feel about slavery. Need Assignment Help?