'We First Have To Acknowledge What Happened': Family Says California's Report On Reparations A Step In The Right Direction

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – A 500-page plus report on reparations from a California task force examines how slavery and systemic racism harmed African Americans. Yet, it does not even include a compensation plan. That report is expected to be presented before lawmakers in 2023.

Instead, the report looks at disparities such as housing and education.

Reparations discussions followed after 2020's social unrest in the aftermath of George Floyd's killing.

"It's not just about – California being a free state but also how they supported slavery," said Dr. Martin Boston, a professor of Pan-African and Ethnic Studies at Sacramento State.

Post slavery, the report also highlights how urban development destroyed black communities throughout California.

In Jonathon Burgess' case, he claims his family's land was stolen.

Burgess tells CBS13 a family bible contains the original deeds to a formerly black church now inside the Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park.

"So many others don't because some weren't able to read and write and if they did, they passed it orally," he said. "And there's certain things our ancestors didn't talk about."

The family says the panel's recommendation to compensate stolen property is a step in the right direction, but believes teaching the history of Black Californians is equally important.

"We have to first acknowledge what happened," Burgess said.