Fulton County Reparations Task Force gives update on research progress

The Fulton County Reparations Task Force is making headway on whether restitution is possible for Black descendants of enslaved people. The group put out an update on their progress last month.

In 2021, the task force was officially established with $250,000 in funding from the Fulton Board of Commissioners for the group to conduct two studies on the possibility of reparations for Black descendants of people who were enslaved or lived under Jim Crow laws in the county.

The task force refers to reparations as a way to repair the harm done to a specific, oppressed minority, but repair can differ between people and communities.

Fulton County Reparations Task Force chair, Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado, looks through some archival materials related to the history of the county (Matthew Pearson/WABE).n”,”aria-caption”:”Fulton County Reparations Task Force chair, Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado, looks through some archival materials related to the history of the county (Matthew Pearson/WABE).n”,”title”:null,”description”:null,”video”:null},{“image”:{“src”:{“large”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/12/20240212FultonReparationsTaskforce-4-1440×810.jpg”,”medium”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/12/20240212FultonReparationsTaskforce-4-416×234.jpg”,”small”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/12/20240212FultonReparationsTaskforce-4-336×189.jpg”},”alt”:””},”caption”:”Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado is the chair of the Fulton County Reparations Task Force, which is tasked with holding meetings and researching historical racial injustice in the county. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)”,”aria-caption”:”Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado is the chair of the Fulton County Reparations Task Force, which is tasked with holding meetings and researching historical racial injustice in the county. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)”,”title”:null,”description”:null,”video”:null},{“image”:{“src”:{“large”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/02/20240212Reparations-26-1440×810-1.jpg”,”medium”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/02/20240212Reparations-26-1440×810-1-416×234.jpg”,”small”:”https://www.wabe.org/app/uploads/2024/02/20240212Reparations-26-1440×810-1-336×189.jpg”},”alt”:””},”caption”:”

Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado and librarian John Wright examine books about the history of Fulton County at the Central Library in downtown Atlanta (Matthew Pearson/WABE).

n”,”aria-caption”:”Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado and librarian John Wright examine books about the history of Fulton County at the Central Library in downtown Atlanta (Matthew Pearson/WABE).n”,”title”:null,”description”:null,”video”:null}],”thumb_titles”:false}”>

Around late 2023, the task force began working on the studies. The first of the two, the “Harm Report” focuses on the legacy and trauma of slavery in the country.

The group held several meetings and listening sessions for public input on the initiative. But last fall, they were paused as research moved further along.