Senate Leader Atkins Issues Statement on Reparations Task Force’s Final Report
SACRAMENTO – Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) released the following statement on the final report released by California’s Reparations Task Force today:
“On a day when the U.S. Supreme Court has once again sought to erase – and escape – America’s history of systemic discrimination and racism, California is choosing another path. Today, the Reparations Task Force handed our state a roadmap that compels us to unflinchingly acknowledge and confront our past, and build a better future.
“I fully recognize that my experiences as a white woman are different than those of Black Californians, but I share the goals of equality, equity, and justice that this report seeks to advance.
“We all need to read this report, truly reflect on the pain and inequality it so clearly details, and take action. We can’t lose this moment.
“In the Legislature, this report will deeply inform our conversations and guide our collaboration as we continue to develop policy and legislation in California on issues such as housing, healthcare, education, environmental justice, the legal system and more.
“I thank the Reparations Task Force for their diligent and difficult work – including Senator Steven Bradford and Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe – as well as the California Legislative Black Caucus, the hundreds of Californians who participated in this process, and our Secretary of State, Dr. Shirley Weber, who authored the legislation that got us to this point.
“With deeper understanding and even greater resolve, we will ensure California makes the progress we need to move forward.”
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Toni G. Atkins is President pro Tempore of the California Senate. Having previously served as Speaker of the California Assembly, she began her tenure in the Senate in 2016. As Senator for District 39, she represents the cities of San Diego, Coronado, Del Mar and Solana Beach. Website of President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins: www.senate.ca.gov/Atkins