1st Black Billionaire Wants $14 trillion in Reparations for Black Americans

While I am of the thought that reparations for Black Americans can and should be discussed, I feel like this was almost a bit too much. From my perspective this man has become a Billionaire following the American dream and working his butt off to create a highly desirable media channel (and then some). YET he is also demanding reparations from a country that he himself claims is systemically racist (which itself has merit with law and order) and that somehow closing the wealth gap for only Black Americans is the best way to do this, plus a sincere apology of course.

Article Here

I just see irony here. IF this country is as racist as many claim, how the hell did he become a billionaire? Also, if we need to address all the wrongs of white people in America, shouldn't the Native Americans be first in line? What about the Latinos, America has royally screwed many of their home countries up, and historically they have been oppressed almost as badly as the Black community. What about other minorities? How about middle easterners and everything we have done to their countries? I just see a spiral of finger pointing and this all becoming a grand social class action lawsuit where there are so many plaintiffs everyone gets a check for $25.00 when all is said and done and our country goes completely bankrupt.

Anyway I digress, I just thought it was interesting that a man who proved the American system works, and obviously cannot be AS racist as we are portrayed (America) if he was able to become a billionaire as an American.

As a footnote I support meaningful change for all disenfranchised Americans, not just Black Americans, and until we all come back together and realize that WE ALL made this country great, not just old white men, then nothing will get better or improve.

AND

The ruling, disgusting elites who believe themselves Gods among men long ago stopped caring about color, and they only use it on us to keep us divided. Without it they would lose that control, so guess what we need to do.....

Also, for those who will jump to lite me on fire as they assume I am White, you are right and I am. HOWEVER my Family has never owned slaves or anyone, and we didn't come to America from Scotland until well after Slavery ended, but I guess because I'm white that is all that matters I guess......

Family motto - "Death before Dishonor"

a reply to: Mikemp44

He's a billionaire, if it's that important to him then he can start shelling out of his own pocket. There were hundreds of black slave owners pre-Civil War so how do we know that the blacks getting reparations aren't descendants of these slave owners? Kamala Harris is a descendant of slave owners as well. Not to mention, blacks aren't slaves and haven't been slaves since slavery was abolished on December 6, 1865.

ETA: One more thing, only rich people were slave owners and that disqualified millions of white families back then. How do we know who owned slaves and who didn't? I know Ben Affleck is a descendant of slave owners, too. So far, lots of rich people are but us normal white folk aren't descendants of slave owners.

a reply to: Mikemp44

His idea will close the wealth gap for 6 months... till all the black people have spent the reparations money at White stores and establishments.

a reply to: Mikemp44

How bout 14 trillion kicks in the ass?

14 trillion equates to how much money per black person?

Or is the money just for African americans?

a reply to: Mikemp44

How many F-15s and Nukes can you buy for 14 trillion?

Asking for a country..........

a reply to: Mikemp44

Is it me or are almost all billionaires wanting to do something that makes no sense and would probably harm more than help?

Gates wants to dim the sun, Johnson wants reparations...does having ludicrous amounts of dollars make people insane?

And yeah, Native Americans should be on the list first, if there's going to be reparations.

Freaking insanity is smiled upon these days.

William Ellison

According to the 1860 census (in which his surname was listed as "Ellerson"), he owned 63 black slaves, making him the largest of the 171 black slaveholders in South Carolina. He held 40 slaves at his death and more than 1,000 acres (400 ha) of land.

Slave owners included a comparatively small number of people of at least partial African ancestry, in each of the original thirteen colonies and later states and territories that allowed slavery;[346] in some early cases black Americans also had white "indentured servants". In 1830 there were 3,775 black slaveholders in the South who owned a total of 12,760 slaves. 80% of the black slaveholders were located in Louisiana, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland.

Black Slave Owners

Odd that we never hear about any of this...

This is what is known as "Virtue Signalling". He supported Trump, which was as risky as could be for him. There is no way in hell he believes this nonsense...its just signalling to viewership.

They also all seem to want to go into space…..maybe they gonna nuke us all and come back when the fallout has all but gone lol just enough of us left to control

originally posted by: EdisonintheFM
a reply to: Mikemp44

Is it me or are almost all billionaires wanting to do something that makes no sense and would probably harm more than help?

Gates wants to dim the sun, Johnson wants reparations...does having ludicrous amounts of dollars make people insane?

And yeah, Native Americans should be on the list first, if there's going to be reparations.

Freaking insanity is smiled upon these days.

a reply to: LSU2018

Don’t look too close at Kamala Harris, on her father’s side, great (or was it great-great) grandfather...

a reply to: Mikemp44

Sure, no problem.
Just let me go grab my backup wallet.

a reply to: Mikemp44

Anyone who thinks ancestral sin should be redressed by the collective punishment of the offspring meets the definition of oppressor in my book.

But in his case, it's pathetically worse, because he's made a fortune capitalizing on the stereotypes of an entire race of people.

The Cable Capitalist

But for all his success, the 55-year-old executive is resented, even reviled, by some leading voices among the very audience he built his fortune catering to--black America.

...

"The problem is how BET represents black people," says Thomas Joyner, a nationally syndicated radio host who has been pressing Viacom to improve the programming. "They've been running the same old stuff for 20 years. Shaking that booty in a video is fine, but you need a lot more than that."

...

Johnson insists BET has done plenty to improve the lot of black Americans-and says that isn't his job, anyway. His mission is to build a profitable business and run it at maximum velocity. That entails giving viewers what they want and doing it as cheaply as possible. If blacks can benefit along the way, so much the better, but that is a byproduct.

That article was written 20 years ago.

Just another billionaire opportunist on the oppression politics gravy train who wants you to believe he's for the little guy now.

You forgot the chinese who built your transcontinental railroad about 700 miles, they were paid 30 to 50% less salary than to others and they had to buy their own food when others didn´t. Blacks were naturilized 1870 and chinese after WW2.

Well if there were not chinese ppl building US, you propably wouldn´t have United States of America.. and they were not even paid fairly.. or respected

Actually you are right, US was built by exploitation as were every populated countries of this blue planet, except Island.. PLAY YA YA DING DONG.

a reply to: Ahabstar

Exactly. But she pushes this like she's a victim and nobody in the media will risk their career calling it out.

a reply to: Mikemp44

While I am of the thought that reparations for Black Americans can and should be discussed

Why? Why is their suffering worthy of reparations but the suffering of other people's ancestors are not? How actually does the concept of the offspring of some people who did bad things to the ancestors of some other people paying money to those people make any sense at all?

Reparations for black slavery in the US is one of the dumbest things i've heard. It really is.

As to the billionaire and his idiotic statements...

en.m.wikipedia.org...

Many scholars within the African American community maintain that BET perpetuates and justifies racism by affecting the stereotypes held about African Americans, and also by affecting the psyche of its young viewers through its bombardment of negative images of African Americans.[31]

Following the death of civil rights leader Coretta Scott King in 2006, BET broadcast its regularly scheduled music video programming, rather than covering King's funeral live, as was done by TV One and Black Family Channel, and by cable news channels such as CNN, Fox News Channel, and MSNBC.

The New York Times reported that the Reverend Delman L. Coates and his organization Enough is Enough led protests every weekend outside the residences of BET executives against what they claim are negative stereotypes of black people perpetuated by BET music videos.[29] Enough is Enough backed an April 2008 report titled The Rap on Rap by the Parents Television Council that criticized BET's rap programming, suggesting that the gratuitous sexual, violent and profane content was targeting children and teens.[36]

In a 2010 interview, BET co-founder Sheila Johnson said that she herself is "ashamed" of what the network has become. "I don't watch it. I suggest to my kids that they don't watch it," she said

Maybe he should take some responsibility for what his own entertainment network has done to the black community.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
This is what is known as "Virtue Signalling". He supported Trump, which was as risky as could be for him. There is no way in hell he believes this nonsense...its just signalling to viewership.

Oh, so he is on a power trip then. Certainly does not need the money.

Maybe this guy should run for president.

a reply to: Mikemp44

Don't know how accurate this is because it's PBS and God knows they're biased as hell...

"And how many of these 10.7 million Africans were shipped directly to North America? Only about 388,000. That’s right: a tiny percentage."

The link.

a reply to: loam

Black entertainment television thinks black people are dumber than even Joe Biden thinks they are.

BET has 25 minutes of commercials for every 1 hour of programming.

Televised NBA games are a close second.

It's disgraceful.

Willie Wonka said it all.