Rhode Island reparations report suggests programs, not cash

By PHILIP MARCELO
Associated Press

A new report suggests ways Providence, Rhode Island, can atone for its extensive ties to the transatlantic slave trade and centuries of racism and discrimination. Among other things, the report says the city should establish home repair funds, launch financial literacy programs and boost aid to Black and Indigenous organizations. The report notably doesn’t recommend giving out direct payments, which some people had called for. The Providence Municipal Reparations Commission released the report Monday. The reparations effort was launched the same year Rhode Island voters approved a ballot referendum getting rid of the words “and Providence Plantations” from the state’s formal name because of its slavery connotations.