Principles of Compensation
(Ann Speaking)

 
 

MAIN PATH: Fred
 
 
Fred
 
 
 

That's better, but I don't think we're there yet. I know Fred isn't going to like this, but I don't think your new principle is broad enough. The problem is that you're still trying to match up those who discriminated with the very people they discriminated against. That's often impossible. Most employers and schools discriminated against blacks for decades. Now here we are 30 or 40 years later trying to match up a certain employer with the people it directly or indirectly harmed. It can't be done. And there is also no way to identify the beneficiaries of the specific acts of injustice that occurred. If most employers discriminated and most whites benefited, then we have a rough justification for taking compensatory action.

Here's an even broader principle. Call it the super-liberal principle of compensation: "In those cases in which a school or employer has discriminated against blacks in the past, it is fair to require that school or employer to compensate blacks directly or indirectly harmed by that discrimination or discrimination by others. Furthermore, such compensation may require some sacrifice from those who directly or indirectly benefited from past discrimination even when they themselves did not discriminate."

Now we have something that can allow us to put things right.


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