Congresswoman suggests exempting black people from taxes

The Hill

Crockett remarked on a podcast that she recently heard a celebrity argue black people should “not have to pay taxes” for a certain period of time, a policy which the freshman lawmaker said was “not necessarily a bad idea.”

Crockett admitted the plan is flawed since merely offering a tax credit would fail to assist black Americans in lower income tax brackets. File Image.

Texas Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett suggested last week that black Americans could receive reparations through a temporary exemption on paying taxes.

Crockett remarked on a podcast for black lawyers that she recently heard a celebrity argue black people should “not have to pay taxes” for a certain period of time, a policy which the freshman lawmaker said was “not necessarily a bad idea.”

“So many black folk, not only do you owe for the labor that was stolen and killed and all the other things, but the fact is we end up being so far behind,” she commented.

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) suggests exempting blacks from taxes.

She then says maybe it's not the best idea because many blacks don't pay any taxes anyway… so maybe give free checks. pic.twitter.com/hPCNleGl1p
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) April 9, 2024

Crockett admitted the plan is flawed since merely offering a tax credit would fail to assist black Americans in lower income tax brackets: “If you do the no tax thing for people that are already struggling and aren't really paying taxes in the first place, it doesn't really matter.” Beneficiaries of federal earned income tax credits and welfare programs are disproportionately black.

Increased debate over reparations for black Americans emerged nearly four years ago after the death of George Floyd and the subsequent nationwide social justice movement. Critics of reparations initiatives assert that the policies would fail to allocate funds in an objective manner, inevitably expand to additional minority groups, and deepen racial divides in the United States.

The proposal from Crockett comes one year after other Democratic members of Congress reintroduced legislation that would form a committee to “study and develop” reparations proposals for black Americans. California Democrats recently unveiled a series of reparations bills meant to address purported systemic racism through education, criminal justice, and health policies while avoiding direct payments, marking the first such effort from a state government.

Payments for the descendants of American slaves are frowned upon by most of the population: some 68% of adults disapprove of the policies, including 80% of whites, 17% of blacks, 58% of Hispanics, and 65% of Asians, according to one survey from Pew Research Center.