Slavery reparation suit gets a reprieve

By Michael Higgins
Tribune staff reporter
Published December 14, 2006

A federal appeals court revived part of a slavery reparations lawsuit on Wednesday, giving a measure of hope to descendants of slaves who are seeking damages from firms they say profited from the slave trade.

The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected most of the plaintiffs' claims. But the court ruled that contrary to a trial judge's decision last year, companies could be held liable if they lied about their ties to slavery to avoid chasing away customers.

E-mail this story
Printable format
Search archives
RSS




The appellate judges offered no opinion on whether the plaintiffs would ultimately win on their consumer-protection claims "but merely reject the district court's ruling that they are barred at the threshold," said Judge Richard Posner, writing for a unanimous three-judge panel.

Still, an attorney for the slave descendants called the opinion "a historic victory." U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle had thrown out all of their claims.

The plaintiffs had filed suit against more than a dozen companies, including Aetna insurance, Brown and Williamson Tobacco, CSX railroad, and financial services companies Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan Chase.

"This is the first judicial victory in the slave reparations movement," said Bruce Afran, a plaintiff attorney who argued the appeal in September. "All cases start out with a few defeats, and then they start to gain steam."

The plaintiffs have said they want proceeds from the lawsuit to become part of a trust fund that would benefit the descendants of slaves, possibly to fund education and health care.

Lawyers for several defendants either declined to comment on Wednesday or could not be reached.

Norgle had ruled that the statute of limitations on the plaintiffs' claims had run out, and that it would not be possible for the plaintiffs to show how they had been damaged by the acts of the defendants about 150 years ago.

On Wednesday, the appeals court ruled that Norgle should have dismissed the plaintiffs' claims without barring them from refiling. But the court otherwise largely agreed with Norgle's reasoning.

"It would be impossible by the methods of litigation to connect the defendants' alleged misconduct with the financial and emotional harm that the plaintiffs claim to have suffered," Posner wrote in a 16-page opinion.

Even if a plaintiff showed that Aetna insured slaves or that JPMorgan Chase lent money to slave-buyers, "there is no way to determine that a given black American today is worse off by a specific, calculatable sum of money ... as a result of the conduct," Posner wrote.

Posner compared the case to the descendant of a Union soldier, killed in battle, who attempts sue a gunmaker that sold guns illegally to the Confederacy.

The ruling was a mixed result for plaintiffs, according to Eric J. Miller, a law professor at St. Louis University who favors reparations.

"On the one hand, they've managed to survive in the appellate court with a reparations suit, which I think is remarkable," Miller said. "The problem is they haven't managed to sustain the main claim, being [the idea] that descendants can sue for reparations on behalf of their ancestors.... Posner has asserted that 150 years is just too long."

Afran said Wednesday that even if the plaintiffs go forward only with the consumer-protection claims, the potential damages could be enormous. "There are millions of African-Americans--and other Americans--who would not do business with those companies if they knew the truth," Afran said.

----------

mjhiggins@tribune.com

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-0612140325dec14,1,6316450.story?coll=chi-newslocal-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true

Google News Alert for: slavery

Most of slavery reparations suit thrown out
Chicago Sun-Times - United States
... the country and moved to Chicago. Slave descendants claim that big American corporations profited from slavery and should pay. AP.
See all stories on this topic

Ground broken on statue meant to reconcile slavery past
Daily Press - Newport News,VA,USA
... The slavery reconciliation plaza will feature a 13-foot bronze sculpture of two figures embracing, benches representing slave ships and a fountain meant to ...
See all stories on this topic

Google Blogs Alert for: slavery

"Slavery reparation suit gets a reprieve"
By hbashman
"Slavery reparation suit gets a reprieve": The Chicago Tribune today contains an article that begins, "A federal appeals court revived part of a slavery reparations lawsuit on Wednesday, giving a measure of hope to descendants of slaves ...
How Appealing - http://howappealing.law.com/

Seventh Circuit Allows Slavery-Related UDAP Claims to Go Forward
By Deepak Gupta
This appears to be a case of first impression where a claim seeking damages arising out of slavery has made it past a motion to dismiss. It is significant for that alone, but beyond that, it will permit the plaintiffs to find out ...
CL&P Blog - http://pubcit.typepad.com/clpblog/

African-American activists seek to revive reparations movement
By Melissa Pamer CORRESPONDENT
Article Launched:12/16/2006 10:59:20 PM PST

PASADENA - A group of local African-American activists hopes to rekindle a movement to demand reparations for slavery from the U.S. government.

"I want to fuel the fire of reparations," said William Turner Jr., pastor of the New Revelation Missionary Baptist Church and chairman of the 10-member Reparation Movement Committee, composed of clergy and civic leaders.

The committee announced its efforts to seek compensation for the descendants of slaves Thursday in a statement that reads, "Reparation is due! If not now, when?"

At a meeting this weekend, committee members are solidifying their agenda and planning rallies and other public actions they hope will bring attention to their cause next year.

"We're still looking for our mule and wagons," Turner said, in reference to the "40 acres and a mule" that was promised freed slaves during the Civil War.

That promise was revoked after President Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. The phrase is often employed as a bitter reference to the failure of Reconstruction to redress the effects of slavery.

The committee plans to hold a rally after the city's annual Black History parade Feb. 17, in which the committee tentatively plans to run a
Advertisement
mule and wagon, according to committee member Sandra Thomas, outgoing president of the Altadena NAACP and conference director of the California NAACP.

The committee is also organizing a major rally for June at which thousands of participants are hoped for, Thomas said.

Several years ago, reparations were high on the agenda of many black civil-rights leaders. But the effort lost momentum, and has been dealt legal blows.

The local effort evolved in a series of meetings over the last few months, committee members said. Pasadena-area leaders had become "complacent" about seeking reparations, Thomas said.

"Our goal is to not only bring this back to the front but to stay on this until descendants of African-American slaves receive reparations," Thomas said. "We're going to stay on the move. Nothing is going to happen until we make something happen."

Thomas said she expects greater attention to reparations across the nation in the coming year - and she wants the local movement to be a part of that broader effort.

The committee is seeking improved educational funding and exemption from federal taxes for descendants of slaves, Turner said.

Pasadena NAACP President Joe Brown said he supports the committee's efforts, but that he is only participating indirectly.

"I'm waiting to see what the agenda is," he said. Other issues including affirmative action need just as much attention as reparations, Brown added.

The group's move comes the same week a federal appeals court in Chicago rejected portions of a lawsuit in which descendants of slaves sought reparations from companies that the plaintiffs said benefited from U.S. slavery.

Despite stating the statute of limitations prevents the plaintiffs from making claims, judges left the door open to future reparations-related cases by saying that companies could be found guilty of consumer fraud if they had lied about their connections to the slave trade. The plaintiffs claimed a historic victory, according to news reports.

Local committee members said their effort is unrelated to the federal case.

http://pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_4855501