Opinion
Opinion: Moral and Ethical Issues of Reparations

Summarizing the familiar patterns of some white people’s responses to racial discomfort as White Fragility has resonated for many people that responded to last week’s column.
The sensibility is so familiar because whereas our personal narratives vary, we are all swimming in the same racial water.

Dr. Wade Nobles
Dr. Wade Nobles, an Oakland psychologist, uses fish as a metaphor of the slave trade in which Western man is depicted as a saltwater fish and Eastern man (Africans) is a freshwater fish that is captured and forced to swim in an alien saltwater culture. The fish can swim but the salt irritates their sensibilities and reddens their eyes.
The salty water represents W.A.S.P/Individualism.
However, African Americans and all nonwhite folks are fresh-water fish whose vision has been irritated by the salt because they have been forced to adapt.
The Right Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, testified at Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee’s committee at the same hearing as filmmaker and seminarian Katrina Browne in June.
Sutton addressed the theological, political and economic complexity and intersectionality of the morality of reparations.
Sutton said Americans should avoid quick emotional responses to the word ‘reparations,’ because it could divide us and create resentment and suspicion.
He said just the term reparations accentuates the pains of the inherited mess of slavery that has long plagued this country.
There was an ominous judgment day tone to his words when he said, “None of us caused this brokenness, but all of us have a moral responsibility to fix it.

Bishop Sutton
“For generations the bodies of Black people did not belong to themselves but were bred, used and sold for the purpose of attaining wealth. Our nation prospered from that evil, and many of our institutions- including, sadly, the church, profited as well.
Sutton told Congress that moral leaders must be committed to repairing our “broken foundation.”
The economic and theological questions intersect, and Browne lived in a house on the corner of Seminary Avenue and Ill-Gotten Gain$ Boulevard (pun intended).
While theologians debate the moral issues of right and wrong and while they rhetorically ask, “What must I do to be saved?” I will focus on the economic, political and legal issues of reparations as I have for the past 30 years.
As the great writer Victor Hugo said, “Nothing is as powerful as an idea whose time has come.” The reparations issue is “woke,” and the time has come to examine the founding documents down the streets of government from Ms. Browne’s childhood lemonade stand.
While the whole world watches, my city of Oakland is again in the vanguard of the fight for justice and equity with its newly formed Department of Race and Equity. That new department is under the supervision of the city administrator and the mayor with the limitations of the budget and finances.
Oaktown, the seat of the Alameda County government, is the cultural hub of several ethnic and racial groups that seek the review and removal of some of the past actions of government and private cultural entities…
Unlike the early debates over the definition of “Black Power” in 1966, which often excluded whites, the reparations debate is open to all Americans.
Reparations is a struggle for the “Soul” of our beloved nation.
It is ‘all-hands-on-deck’ time.
It’s ‘repair the ship of state’ time.
Its reform and discard institutions time.
Let us think nationally but act locally to examine our local governments to find the hidden obstacles.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

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Activism
Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces
It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans
Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.
It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.
At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.
Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.
Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.
Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.
This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.
Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.
Activism
OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark
Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook
As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.
Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.
Our community is hurting. Things have to change.
The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.
Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.
Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.
I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.
SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.
For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.
This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.
This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.
Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.
Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.
About the Author
Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.
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