Kamala Harris has suggested she would be open to exploring reparations for slavery if she wins the White House.
The US vice president said the country needed “to speak truth about the generational impact of our history”, citing the legacy of redlining policies and Jim Crow laws as well as slavery.
Ms Harris made the comments during an interview with reporters from the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) in Philadelphia, an organisation Donald Trump also addressed last month.
Asked if she would use the executive powers of the presidency to create a commission to study reparations, she signalled her support for the idea.
“We need to speak truth about the generational impact of our history, in terms of the generational impact of slavery, the generational impact of redlining, of Jim Crow law,” she said.
“I think that part of that is studying it to figure out exactly what we need to do.”
However, she said it was “ultimately” a task for Congress to take up.
She said: “I’m not discounting the importance of any executive action, but ultimately Congress [will have to] because if you’re going to talk about it in any substantial way, there will be hearings, there will be a level of public education and dialogue.”
“I think that was part of the spirit behind the Congressional action thus far,” she added, “to ensure that everyone can participate in this conversation in a way that elevates knowledge about history and the reference points that have, that are the impetus of this conversation.”
Reparations is a broad umbrella term that does not necessarily imply direct financial compensation for the ancestors of enslaved people.
While Ms Harris has previously said she supports “some form” of reparations in the past, she has not been explicit in what form that might take so far during the 2024 campaign.
The reparations debate has led to some states, such as New York, Illinois and California, making moves to address social inequalities stemming from decades of discrimination.
Some Harris allies have argued that backing reparations could help the Democrat win back black voters, who polls suggest are abandoning the party.
But others fear it would alienate more voters than it would energise, given the glaring racial divide over the issue.
A Washington Post poll last year found that 75 per cent of black Americans support federal reparations, but just 15 per cent of white Americans and 36 per cent of Hispanic Americans agree.
Ms Harris, the first black woman to top a major party’s presidential ticket, has largely avoided engaging in identity politics debates.
Trump, by contrast, has repeatedly focused on Ms Harris’ dual heritage, claiming in his own interview with the NABJ that she had only recently “happened to turn black”.
Polls suggest the Republican had been gaining ground with black men in particular prior to Mr Biden’s exit from the race.
Asked if she would be able to win more votes among the bloc, Ms Harris told the NABJ: “I think it’s very important to not operate from the assumption that black men are in anybody’s pocket.
“Black men are like any other voting group, you’ve gotta earn their vote.
“So I’m working to earn the vote, not assuming I’m going to have it because I am black”.
