Add your name as a grassroots co-sponsor to H.R. 40

What we’re seeing from the Trump Administration and extremist Republicans is a coordinated, years-long effort to dismantle any policy that uplifts people of color and addresses America’s shameful history of systemic racism. Their attacks on DEI, critical race theory, and affirmative action are all means to the same end. It is anti-Blackness on steroids.

But I’m not backing down in our pursuit of healing and reparatory justice. That’s why I’m proud to reintroduce H.R. 40 alongside Senator Cory Booker during Black History Month. This bill would establish a federal commission to finally address the lasting legacy of slavery for African American descendants of enslaved people through reparations.

This bill is a powerful contrast to Donald Trump’s harmful actions and hateful rhetoric. It is a call to action for America to address the systemic oppression of Black people.

I need to know that supporters like you are with me on this type of legislation and agree that it is needed right now. Will you sign your name as a grassroots co-sponsor of H.R. 40?

SIGN ON

The concept of paying reparations to Black Americans is not new — it has deep historical roots which began in the state I proudly represent and goes back over 300 years. In 1784, Belinda Sutton, who was a freedwoman in Massachusetts, won reparations from the estate of the man who enslaved her.

It doesn’t end there: Federal legislation originally promised 40 acres and a mule to formerly enslaved people after the Civil War ended. But when Andrew Johnson took office after Lincoln, he revoked that promise.

H.R. 40 is named after the failed promise of 40 acres and a mule for formerly enslaved Black people. If passed, this bill would create a federal commission to examine the ongoing impact that slavery has on the lives of millions of Black people in this country.

I’m deeply honored to carry this torch from my mentor and friend, the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who championed this bill before me and Congressman John Conyers before her.

This country was built on the backs of enslaved people who were stolen from their homeland and then had the land they were promised stolen from them as well. It is long overdue for the federal government to take accountability for the deep, structural injustice that exists because of the slavery’s legacy. If you agree, add your name as a grassroots co-sponsor of H.R. 40.

YES, I AGREE

Onward,

Ayanna