John Torpey – The Conversation

A Black man holds up a sign during a Reparations Task Force meeting in Los Angeles, California on Sept. 22, 2022. Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

June 1, 2023

Reparations over formerly enslaved people has a long history: 4 essential reads on why the idea remains unresolved

Howard Manly, The Conversation

Former enslaved persons have never received a dime for their labor. Nor have their descendants received reparations for the legacy of slavery. Should the descendants be paid? By whom and how much?

Several 2020 presidential candidates have called for reparations for slavery in the U.S. AP Photo/Douglas Healey

April 11, 2019

From ‘40 acres and a mule’ to LBJ to the 2020 election, a brief history of slavery reparation promises

John Torpey, City University of New York

Reparations has emerged as a hot topic among Democratic candidates hoping to replace Trump in 2020. But until now, the issue has only rarely received national attention.

A security officer checks a traveler’s passport. AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

September 28, 2018

How passports evolved to help governments regulate your movement

John Torpey, City University of New York

How did governments get the power to limit people’s movements in the first place? A historian explains.

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