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If Biden promises trillions in reparations for Black Americans, he could make it to the White House… But would he pay up?

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Top Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is being asked to pledge that he will endorse $14 trillion in compensation for the slave years if elected. Will he make the pledge, only to brush it aside once he’s in the White House?

If ever there was a time for the US black community to demand reparations for being subjected to the centuries-long slave trade, now is certainly it. In the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of a white cop, the country is convulsing from the fires of protest from coast to coast. At the same time, a large chunk of the population, when not adjusting their surgical masks, is hand-wringing over their purported ‘white privilege’. To further complicate this nationwide nervous breakdown, we are just five months away from what promises to be the most contentious and momentous US presidential election in recent memory.

Enter Joe Biden, 77, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, who may be tempted to turn on the money hose to pacify Black Lives Matter and end the looting, burning and general chaos that has shaken the United States to its very foundation. To this end, it didn’t come across as a subtle form of bribery when Delaware State Senator Darius Brown strongly suggested that Biden do what he can to fund reparations.

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“The people in this room, we love you,” Brown gushed during a church event this week where Biden was guest of honor. “But we’re here not only to love you, but to push you …[to] support the African-American Democratic base. And it shouldn’t be a study of reparations. It should be funding reparations.”

The message was as unmistakable as it was disturbing: if Biden wants the blessing of the black community in November, promising reparations is the quickest way to their heart. So exactly how much money are we talking about to make amends for one of the most grievous chapters in American history? According to billionaire Robert Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), a “wealth transfer” to the tune of $14 trillion dollars would set the historical record straight. Oddly, Johnson never revealed how he reached such a figure, which amounts to some $350,000 for each of the 40 million black people living in the United States.

This daunting request raises so many questions it makes one’s head spin. First, many Americans, predominantly from the political right, will argue that the country has already made massive amends to the black community in the form of expensive social programs – like Affirmative Action, which granted special consideration to previously discriminated minorities in such areas as the workplace and education. This was all part of Lyndon Johnson’s ‘Great Society’ domestic program that spent billions of dollars funding a welfare system for the disadvantaged, as well as programs that benefited all Americans, like Medicaid and Medicare.

Furthermore, there is no small irony in the black community looking to Joe Biden as their political savior. After all, it is no secret that many black people suffered major financial setbacks during the Obama presidency, when Biden was vice president. According to one study, the percentage of black homeowners who were falling behind on their mortgage rose 20-fold from 2007 to 2013, while only the top 10 percent of Americans – largely made up of white people – enjoyed increases in personal wealth thanks to massive bank bailouts that kept stock values above water.

At the same time, it has not gone unnoticed by many Americans – particularly by members of the Democratic Party – that Biden has done little to help the black community on the justice front throughout his lengthy political career.

Back when Biden was a senator, he supported the 1994 Crime Bill – officially known as the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act – which slapped repeat lawbreakers with heavy prison sentences even for relatively minor offenses. As a result, the judicial system witnessed an explosion in the prison population, mostly from among black people.

Senator Kamala D. Harris, who has been named as a possible Biden running mate, slammed the former vice president’s record on crime.

“That crime bill… was the first time that we had a federal three-strikes law,” Harris said. “It funded the building of more prisons in the states.”

With ongoing across the board loss of tax revenue (covid), the multi trillion dollar stimulus (more debt), unemployment, a racially charged political climate and being at the early stages of a recession/depression, how do you make this message heard now?
— “Woke” But I Take Naps (@DeepHouseNat7) June 1, 2020

Aside from Biden appearing to be the wrong guy tasked with handing out reparations to the black community, there is a much more pressing issue with regards to the astronomical amount being requested. Has anyone considered that such a mind-boggling amount of money won’t mean much if the United States goes broke as it struggles to pay such a debt?

Lately, the idea has taken root that America is an endless source of cash and can simply print its way out of any problem. From the $700 billion bailout of the financial system in 2008, to Trump signing the $2 trillion CARES Act to address the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, there seems to be no bottom to Uncle Sam’s deep pockets. But sooner or later, somebody will have to pay these outstanding bills, and that ‘somebody’ will be the American taxpayer – which includes the black community.

Considering his questionable support for the black community in the past, Biden, true to political tradition, may quickly forget his pledge of reparations once in the White House. It certainly would not be the first time a politician forgot a pledge made on the campaign trail.

Finally, let’s not discount the possibility – albeit a distant one – that Trump, who has displayed a willingness to spend a king’s ransom in the course of his presidency, may decide to ‘cut a deal’ with the black community, resolving the reparations question once and for all. After all, he is known for the ‘art of the deal’.

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Erdogan election defeat would be ‘revenge’ – Syrian Kurds

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The YPG claims the Turkish president failing to win another term would be payback for Ankara’s counter-terrorism operations in Syria

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s defeat in this month’s presidential election would serve as “revenge” for Türkiye’s military operations in Syria, a top official of the People’s Defense Units (YPG) has said.

Salih Muslim, one of the leaders of the YPG — a Syrian militant group affiliated with the Turkish Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and designated by Ankara as a terrorist organization — said in an interview with Medya Haber Kurdish TV channel that his organization has grown frustrated with Türkiye’s counterterrorism operations ongoing in the northern part of Syria since 2016, Daily Sabah reported.

“Now, we have an opportunity in our hands,” Muslim said, stressing that the YPG is eager to see Erdogan unseated. “It’s the first time we have such a thing happening in elections.” He added that “If we can win at the ballot box, we will take all the revenge from [the defeat of] one person.”

Muslim’s statement comes as several members of the YPG and the PKK have openly expressed support for Erdogan’s main challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, as the two head into a runoff election on May 28. In the previous round, held on May 14, both candidates failed to secure an outright majority with Erdogan gaining just over 49.4% of the vote while Kilicdaroglu received 44.96%.

Kilicdaroglu has vowed to mend Ankara’s relations with NATO and revive Türkiye’s EU membership talks, which have been effectively stalled since 2016. He has also accused Russia of spreading “conspiracies” and “deep fakes” apparently referring to footage circulating online purportedly linking him to the PKK, and told Moscow to get its “hands off the Turkish state.” Russia has rejected the accusations.

Somalis cheer on Türkiye’s Erdogan to win re-election

Erdogan has repeatedly accused his rival of “colluding with terrorists” and threatening to undo Türkiye’s achievements in its war on terror. He has also blasted Kilicdaroglu for trying to “detach” the country from Russia.

Türkiye has been waging low-intensity warfare against Kurdish militias along its Syrian and Iraqi borders for four decades, in a back-and-forth campaign that has claimed the lives of over 40,000 people.

The PKK and its affiliates have been waging an insurgency since 1984 demanding political and cultural autonomy with the final goal of establishing an independent Kurdish State, laying claim to territories in southeast Türkiye and northern parts of Iraq and Syria.

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Chinese special envoy meets with Zelensky

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Li Hui visited Kiev to share Beijing’s views on a political settlement to the Ukraine crisis

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has met with China’s newly appointed special envoy for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, who traveled to Kiev to convey Beijing’s views on a diplomatic resolution to Ukraine’s conflict with Russia.

According to a statement published on Thursday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Li held talks with Zelensky as well as the head of the Ukrainian President’s Office, Andrey Yermak, Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba, and representatives from several other ministries.

Beijing said both sides had agreed that the recent phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Zelensky had outlined the direction for future relations between their two nations, which it stated should be built on mutual respect and sincerity.

During his trip, Li reiterated that Beijing is willing to serve as a peace broker to help reach a political resolution to the conflict with Russia, based on the principles outlined in a 12-point roadmap published by China in late February.

“There is no panacea in resolving the crisis. All parties need to start from themselves, accumulate mutual trust, and create conditions for ending the war and engaging in peace talks,” Li said, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s statement.

The special envoy’s two-day trip to Ukraine is the first leg of a wider European tour, during which he is expected to visit Poland, France, Germany, and Russia. Beijing has explained that the trip aims to promote communication toward “a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.”

Hungary backs Chinese plan for Ukraine

China’s peace efforts have been welcomed by Russia as well as some European nations such as Hungary, and have been praised for acknowledging the national interests of both parties.

The roadmap, however, has been criticized by some in the West. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg claimed that China lacked “credibility” as it has refused to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell insisted that “the only thing that can be called a peace plan is Zelensky’s proposal.”

The Ukrainian president has demanded that Russia must withdraw from territories that Kiev claims as its own, as well as pay war reparations and face an international tribunal. The Kremlin has dismissed the initiative, claiming it does not take into consideration “the realities on the ground,” including the new status of four former Ukrainian regions as part of Russia.

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Pakistan’s top court orders release of former PM Imran Khan

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Pakistan’s Supreme Court has ordered the release of former prime minister Imran Khan, whose arrest earlier this week triggered deadly protests across the country, Geo TV news channel has reported.

The court considered an appeal by Khan’s legal team on Thursday, ruling that the arrest of the opposition figure was illegal, according to the broadcaster.

The leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party was detained on an order from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Tuesday as soon as he arrived at a lower court in connection with a graft case against him. He has been held at a police compound in the capital, Islamabad, since then.

Khan’s spokesperson told Al Jazeera that the 70-year-old was apprehended in court before he could even appear before the judges, which was “in violation of all laws.” The PTI party claimed that it was not an arrest, but “an abduction,” and called on its supporters to take the streets.

Pakistan deploys army after Imran Khan’s arrest

Pakistan has been gripped by violent protests for the last three days, with demonstrators clashing with security forces and setting government buildings on fire in major cities across the country. The government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has deployed the military in an attempt to curb the unrest.

Some 2,500 of Khan’s supporters, including some top figures in his party, have been arrested so far. Local media have reported at least 11 protesters killed and hundreds of police officers wounded.

Numerous criminal cases have been launched against Khan since his removal from office after a no-confidence vote in April 2022. The PTI leader, who remains highly popular in the country, denies all accusations against him.

The politician claimed a year ago that he had been deposed as a result of a US-led “international conspiracy” and accused his opponents of receiving money from foreign forces.

Khan has been making active attempts to return to power since then, staging massive rallies across the country. The former premier survived an assassination attempt last November, escaping with a non-life-threatening leg wound after several bullets were fired at him.

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