#19 - The Bucks Start Here: William Darity Jr. and Kirsten Mullen

PAY THE TAB: Reparations Now

Money isn’t the only part of reparations - but it sure is a big one! We sit down with William Darity and Kirsten Mullen, the nation's leading reparations experts. They answer key questions: How big is the tab? Who gets paid? What good is money unless we first change our racist society? They also break down why they're hopeful that reparations will happen in America - and tell us about the transforming power of cold hard cash.
SHOW NOTES
Guests: William Darity and Kirsten Mullen
William A. Darity Jr. is Professor of Public Policy, African American Studies, Economics, and Business at Duke University. He’s the founding director of the Cook Center on Social Equity at Duke.
A. Kirsten Mullen is a writer, folklorist and lecturer whose work focuses on race, art, history and politics. She’s the founder of Artefactual, and was part of the team that designed the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Darity and Mullen co-wrote the award-winning book From Here To Equality: Reparations For Black Americans in the 21st Century.

William Darity's home page
Kisten Mullen's bio
Selected works by Darity and Mullen:

• From Here To Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the 21st Century (2020)
• The Black Reparations Project : A Handbook For Racial Justice (2023)
• Black Reparations in the United States: An Introduction (2024)

Related articles:

• “Stolen Lives” - Elizabeth Wrigley-Field’s piece on stolen Black time and the “longevity gap” (2024)
• "What Is Owed" - article in the Nation on Darity and Mullen’s case for reparations (2021)
• "The New Reparations Math” - on Thomas Craemer's revolutionary approach to calculating the tab (2020)

HIGHLIGHTS OF EPISODE:

[14:57] The racial wealth gap and their plan for money reparations

[24:42] The longevity gap and reparations

[32:54] Eligibility issues for Black American reparations

[42:36] Encouraging news on growing public support for money reparations

[49:25] Problems with local and state initiatives

[58:34] Mullen on the importance of collective will and calls to action

Contact Tony & Adam

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