The “reparations” bill calls for the creation of a task force to study and propose ideas for how African Americans in California can be compensated for slavery and its “after lives,” as the author of the legislation, Dr. Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), describes the Jim Crow laws and other forms of injustice and state-sanctioned discrimination that have existed in the United States from 1865 until now.

“The bill would require the task force to recommend, among other things, the appropriate mechanism for redress as it pertains to California’s role in the enslavement of Black people,” Weber read in a statement at the bill’s hearing to her colleagues on the California state Assembly floor.

The California state Senate is now reviewing the bill and is expected to vote on it by June 25.

If the bill passes the Senate and Gov. Newsom signs it into law, the state will appoint and commission an eight-member task force composed of people from different backgrounds.

“In other words, California state, county and city authorities actively supported the institution of Black slavery both within and beyond California.”