SCHOLARS TO MEET ON SLAVERY REPARATIONS LITIGATION AGAINST BLUE-CHIP CORPORATIONS

Home » multinationals » SCHOLARS TO MEET ON SLAVERY REPARATIONS LITIGATION AGAINST BLUE-CHIP CORPORATIONS

SCHOLARS TO MEET ON SLAVERY REPARATIONS LITIGATION AGAINST BLUE-CHIP CORPORATIONS

Filed under: Corporations

By: Deadria Farmer-Paellmann

On Thursday, June 26, 2003, scholars will convene at the National Press Club, Holeman Lounge, from 12 noon-3 pm, at 529 14th Street NW, Washington D.C., for a discussion on landmark slavery reparations lawsuits filed by descendants of enslaved Africans against blue-chip corporations. The meeting is entitled: Should Corporate America Pay? PRESS ADVISORY For Immediate Release: June 9, 2003 Contact: Deadria C. Farmer-Paellmann Phone: 917-365-3007 SCHOLARS TO MEET ON SLAVERY REPARATIONS LITIGATION AGAINST BLUE-CHIP CORPORATIONS On Thursday, June 26, 2003, scholars will convene at the National Press Club, Holeman Lounge, from 12 noon-3 pm, at 529 14th Street NW, Washington D.C., for a discussion on landmark slavery reparations lawsuits filed by descendants of enslaved Africans against blue-chip corporations. The meeting is entitled: Should Corporate America Pay? Between March 26, 2002 and January 21, 2003, nine (9) lawsuits were filed against 17 corporations for slavery reparations. The defendants are companies from industries including: Banking, Insurance, Transportation and Tobacco. The plaintiffs are descendants of enslaved Africans who allege that the corporations have been unjustly enriched by their participation in crimes against humanity. Some of the plaintiffs in these actions are the biological sons and daughters of enslaved Africans. The plaintiffs are asking that a humanitarian trust fund be created by the companies to address the economic, social, health, and educational disparity that slave descendants live under as a result of the legacy of slavery. An esteemed panel of scholars from across the country will help give clarity on issues addressed in the lawsuits including the legal history of slavery; the economic, social, and psychological impact of slavery on descendants of enslaved Africans; and the precedence supporting reparations. Meeting Highlights/Guest Speakers Include: Dr. Raymond A. Winbush, Morgan State University, and author of, Should America Pay? Slavery and the Raging Debate On Reparations, will serve as moderator. Professor Richard America, Georgetown University, McDonough School of Business, will address the economic and equitable basis for slavery reparations. Dr. Joy A. DeGruy-Leary, Graduate School of Social Work, Portland State University, will present on her pioneering research and development of the explanatory theory “Post-traumatic Slave Syndrome”. Professor Ted Kornweibel, Professor Emeritus of Africana Studies at San Diego State University, will present research on the complicity of the railroad industry in the enslavement of African men, women and children. Professor William M. Wiecek, Syracuse University College of Law, Chester A. Congdon Professor of Public Law and Legislation, will discuss the public law of slavery including neo-Somerset freedom cases, and the reconstruction era. Dr. Conrad W. Worrill, Northeastern Illinois University Center for Inner City Education, and Chairman of the National Black United Front, will give an overview of the history of the reparations movement in the United States. This meeting is sponsored by a consortium of academic, scholarly, and grassroots organizations including: Morgan State University's Institute for Urban Affairs, Northeastern Illinois University's Inner City Studies Education, the National Black United Front, the December 12th Movement, Millions for Reparations, the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N'COBRA), and the Restitution Study Group, Inc.