| THIS IS A READ-ONLY ARCHIVE FROM THE SORABJI.COM MESSAGE BOARDS (1995-2016). |
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Aetna Inc., CSX Corp., and FleetBoston Financial Corp. were named in the lawsuit filed in Brooklyn federal court by 36-year-old black activist Deadria Farmer-Paellmann in the latest step by some blacks to get compensation for what their ancestors suffered as slaves. "The practice of slavery constituted an 'immoral and inhumane deprivation of Africans' life, liberty, African citizenship rights, cultural heritage' and it further deprived them of the fruits of their own labor," the 21-page suit said. Both Aetna and CSX said slavery was a regrettable chapter in U.S. history but the events in question occurred so long ago that a courtroom was not the proper venue to decide on reparations. ....... The complaint did not contain a monetary damage figure, but did estimate the current value of slaves' unpaid labor as $1.4 trillion. The gross domestic product of the United States at the end of 2001 was $10.25 trillion. ......... You are here : XtraMSN > News > World News Wed 10 April 2002 Today In World News Activist Deadria Farmer-Paellmann - Reuters Slavery Lawsuits Hit US Firms 27/03/2002 04:33 PM Reuters NEW YORK (Reuters) - Three large US companies are named in a lawsuit filed on behalf of black Americans descended from slaves, the first-ever class action seeking reparations from firms for profiting from slavery. Aetna Inc., CSX Corp., and FleetBoston Financial Corp. were named in the lawsuit filed in Brooklyn federal court by 36-year-old black activist Deadria Farmer-Paellmann in the latest step by some blacks to get compensation for what their ancestors suffered as slaves. "The practice of slavery constituted an 'immoral and inhumane deprivation of Africans' life, liberty, African citizenship rights, cultural heritage' and it further deprived them of the fruits of their own labor," the 21-page suit said. Both Aetna and CSX said slavery was a regrettable chapter in U.S. history but the events in question occurred so long ago that a courtroom was not the proper venue to decide on reparations. Plaintiff attorneys said 12 other companies would be getting letters in the coming days requesting a dialogue on a settlement. The other companies were not named. The suit said yet-to-be-named corporate defendants from the industrial, manufacturing, financial and other sectors would be named in subsequent actions once they were identified. The complaint did not contain a monetary damage figure, but did estimate the current value of slaves' unpaid labor as $1.4 trillion. The gross domestic product of the United States at the end of 2001 was $10.25 trillion. BANK CONNECTION TO SLAVERY "This is a case about wealth built on the back and from the sweat of African slaves," said plaintiff attorney Roger Wareham at a news conference. "We expect those companies that are targeted to stand up." Advocates of reparations for slavery argue that the descendants of slaves are still being hurt economically and sociologically by their ancestors' bondage. Those who argue against compensation say, among other things, that it happened so long ago that reparations would be punishing people who had nothing to do with the practice of slavery. According to the lawsuit, FleetBoston is the successor to Providence Bank, which was founded by Rhode Island businessman John Brown. Brown owned ships that embarked on several slaving voyages and the suit says FleetBoston lent substantial sums to Brown, thus financing and profiting from Brown's slave trade. FleetBoston also collected customs fees due from ships transporting slaves, thus further profiting, the suit said. ................ "The claimants named CSX because slave labor was used to construct portions of some U.S. rail lines under the political and legal system in place more than a century before CSX was formed in 1980," the company said. "The courtrooms are the wrong setting for this issue." |
this is 2 week old news man. |
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Look, clinton already apologized for slavery, let it go. seriously. i realize i am just a white man, and so you think if i were black i would be all for the law suit. i dunno, i did not grow up in this country as a black. i grew up as a nerd. in kansas, where i grew up, the black kids were treated with respect. the guy like me, curly haired, glasses, we caught the shit. we were segregated. we had to sit in certain seats on the bus, not allowed to play on certain swingsets, whatever. i grew up in the rural midwest and never witnessed racism. seriously. i have never witnessed first hand any type of racism. maybe aligations on tv, in the paper or what ever, but I have never actually seen it. you know where most of it happenes today? in your own mind. you did not get a job you interviewed for. what would you be thinking? i suck, so no one will hire me? probably not. everyone thinks they are the best at what they do, so instead you think "they did not hire me because I am a girl/black/lesbian/gay/aids victim/handicapped/got a third eye and a humped back/purple poke-a-dotted, or had a star on thars... most prejudism happens in your own head, and you see it that way. |
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just because you don't see racism,doesnt mean it doesnt exist. that's an awfully ignorant position to take that i wouldn't say too loudly. |
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without going there again, the difference, in my mind anyway, i took the word to be of me, on the whole, not just my opinion on that subject. |
Wouldn't aiding those oppressed by the bondage of slavery and removing them from this be a better statement than handing out money? I mean, if the point of all of this is to honor those who were slaves and their memories of their suffering, wouldn't the best thing we can do be banning together and ensuring that others don't have to go through what they did? Wouldn't that be the best way to honor their memories? Just a thought that I had. |
companies must use every legal resource to compete. this is capitalism. you cannot be guilty of laws made after the fact. this is the US constituion. are white males owed for lost wages for jobs they didn't get due to racist affirmative action policies? not as extreme as slavery, but the principle is similar. the question at hand is can a company be held liable for damages when it operated within the law and without negligence? |
Well, not really, but I did witness you squishing a bug once. It's not as extreme, but the principle is similar. |
LS |
i'm calling the authorities cruel and evil murderers |
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It was legal at the time for the companies to work people to death. Sometimes you have to right wrongs. |
The same people aren't even living anymore. LS |
Slavery reparations: 100 years old Getting Justice: timeless... For everything else, there's BastardCard! |
Is it truly fair to make Johnny pay for what his great-great-great grandfather did to some slaves (which although wrong was legal at the time) now, when Johnny had nothing to do with it, and doesn't believe in what great-great-great grandpappy did, either? When Johnny is ashamed of what this mad in his ancient family history did, should he pay his hard earned money to pay it back? If we are talking about paying them for the work they did, but didn't get paid for, and how that is wrong, what about housewives? We do a lot more work than anyone imagines, many things, most things we do are taken for granted and just expected. Is not our current work worth pay, just as theirs was? Yes, there was extreme wrong done to the slaves, but we are not the only ones responsible, in fact, none of use were born and are in no way responsible for what happened. Searching for someone to sue and someone to pay money to someone isn't going to ease the souls of those who were tormented. Taking as stand and doing everything we can to ensure that this doesn't have to happen to others is the best statement we can make that says, historians did wrong and this is how we, the later generations of men, will show it is wrong, by ensuring that it doesn't continue, that it is known of as wrong and therefore not tolerated. There is so much involved in this that making someone pay money is just the easy way out, and not necessarily the right form of payment. |
if the africans had gotten the ships and weapons working for them before the europeans did, we'd have seen the cotton fields full of european slaves. the yinned-out, guilt-ridden, sympathetic whiteys like to imagine "primitive" groups from africa and the americas as peaceful folk minding their own business, living in harmony. in fact, they were quite vicious -- they just didn't have the cool weapons and ships to really spread their mayhem around. all we owe the descendents of the slaves is enough respect and dignity to let them earn whether or not they are worthy of more respect and dignity. it's all anyone owes anyone, regardless of their ancestral baggage. |
That's the greatest thing you've ever said, dave. That no booze or cigarettes thing must really be getting to you. What about the descendants of indentured servants? What about the Native Americans? Wouldn't it be kind of great if all the central and south americans got back all their gold and silver? |
and the spanish, with the inquisition. and the norwegians, with the vikings. france, with napoleon. mongolia, with Gengis khan. don't forget the egyptians, with the jews. |
just because you don't see racism,doesnt mean it doesnt exist. that's an awfully ignorant position to take that i wouldn't say too loudly." did i say i did not believe racism exist, or did I say I did not see it? I did not see it. Funny, since I am from such a red neck, back water area, huh? |
wait a second... jews were black back then too... the blacks owe themselves some cash! antigone, as usual, you lack argument. |
dave." -- scary thought. coffee kicked in. pardon me while i go emancipate some ultra-dense poo nuggets. |
Dave, you owe your intestines more fiber. |
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Trace I didnt say anything about being from anywhere. I only addressed what you said. Where you are from is irrelavent to me. its what you said that stands out. Trace , Eri, pay attention to nate's 6:08 post yesterday. I think those points are the crux of the matter tobe discussed. |
The answer, of course, would be absolutely not. Again, Patrick I did not say I did not think racism exists, I simply said _I_ never personally witnessed it. I have never personally witnessed the birth of a baby either, but that does not mean that I do not beleive you were hatched from an egg in the cabbage patch. Big difference. And, yes, you have said I was from hillbilly, redneck fuckwitt to be exact, country. |
"you know where most of it happenes today? in your own mind." based upon this:"i have never witnessed first hand any type of racism. maybe aligations on tv, in the paper or what ever, but I have never actually seen it." it implies you deny it exists. Trace im from hillbilly country too. I only judge you on what you say. |
But, that does not change the fact that a lot of "perceived" discrimination can be attributed to one's attitude and pre-expectations. |
Uh huh... |
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facile and markedly lacking in fecundity. boring, clownish argumentation. i recommend ignoring him. |
what up with that? |
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When did this start? Shit man, I'm so out of the loop. |
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both lips gave me a really big smile after she checked me out at Trader Joe's today. We had a brief conversation about the soy dream Cookie Avalanche I was buying and I made her laugh. I should probably find an excuse to go back real soon. |
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boys. they say it's competition when they climb all over each other, but we know better. |
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Patrick is your ass palmee and Cat is barfous. |
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How about this? |
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bureaucracies? Did I miss a memo or something? Why shouldn't I get excited about that, spider? Should I save myself for you? (wink) |
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LS |