N’COBRA’s contribution to the dialogue will center around our use of international instruments in furtherance of our reparations goals, what that could mean for us going forward, how this focus can be specifically used to advance HR 40 and the Chicago Chapter se of this focus. 

There are several international instruments that empower the reparations movement at this time. The Durban Declaration and Program of Action (DDPA), the outcome document of the World Conference Against Racism sits at the top. The relevant portions of this document are those paragraphs that settle the issue of 1) were the actions of enslavement, the Slave trade, colonialism and apartheid international crimes against humanity, 2) were there injuries resulting from those actions,
3) do those injuries remain among the descendants of those affected, and 4) is there an obligation to repair the injuries. In each of these areas, the answer was yes. 

The International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and International Covenant for the Elimination of Racism (ICERD) are the next two important instruments. The ICCPR’s article 27 spells out a special relationship of the state to its national minorities – differentiating from immigrant minorities and subgroup minorities. Afrikans in America has this unique designation. ICERD
is particularly important to the issue of reparations when we view several of the Commission’s General Recommendations. In General Recommendation 28 (ICERD GC28), the Commission incorporated the Durban Declaration and Program of Action into the ICERD covenant. This was huge, because America walked out of Durban.Now it doesn’t matter. In ICERD GC 34, they particularly lay out an emphasis on People of Afrikan descent existing in States. This calls for special attention and special measures by the State.ICERD GC 32 defines and lays forth the scope of special measures that are to be directed toward the elimination of racism. 

Finally, reparations activist must look at how international law defines reparations and determines what meets the criteria of reparations.. The Permanent Court of International Justice (ICJ) lays out the “general and foundational rule for reparations in the Chorrzow Factory case of 1928. Here, it held that reparations must, as far as possible, wipe out all consequences of the illegal act and re-establish the situation which would, in all probability, have existed if that act had not been committed. The International Law Commission in their Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for International Wrongful Act, fleshes out “all consequences” as full reparations. Full reparations
include 
1. Cessation, Assurances and Guarantee of Non-Repetition – the entity must immediately stop the wrongful acts
2. Restitution – the entity must return the people to the state they would have been 
3. Compensation – monetary settlement for damages or other needs to be made whole
4. Satisfaction – to return the dignity back to the people. (How do Afrikan people get our good name back!)
5. Rehabilitation – to correct the heart, mind and spirit damage of the people.

What does our focus on these instruments mean going forward. One, it has all people of
Afrikan descent globally speaking the same language regardless of our lingua franca. All people of Afrikan descent living today experience a multitude of injures inherited from the original and ongoing crimes against our humanity resulting from the international European systems of enslavement, the slave trade, colonialism and apartheid (segregation). This is huge. In fact, at the 8th Pan African Congress held in Johannesburg, SA, January 2014 a resolution was passed that stated all of
the issues that face Africa’s and people of Afrikan descent can be framed in this manner!

The DDPA gives us the title of reparation enforcers and the task of reparations enforcement.
We interpret the DDPA as an international statement declaring the human right of people of Afrikan descent to be repaired from our injuries, i.e., reparations is a human right. As such, just like any legal document, the strength of it lies in its abilities to be enforced. The US Declaration of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Freedman’s Bureau Act, the Brown vs. the Board of Education decision, the Civil Rights Act, etc are many of the most telling examples of documents who’s impact was based only on the ability to enforce it. Although we have this monumentally important document in the DDPA, we must find the capability to enforce its power. 

Finally, with the focus on full reparations, we automatically broaden our understanding and
activism around what forms of repair are needed. The notion of full reparations is expressed clearly in CARICOM Initiative 10 –Points of repair. 

How do we use the international focus to further HR 40. N’COBRA-Chicago led a team that
contributed an issue to the List of Issues presented at the ICCPR periodic review earlier this year. Our focus was on police crimes, with Chicago as a major city whereby police acted with impunity when people of Afrikan descent were concerned. Our recommendation included the executive passing of HR 40 as we concluded that police violence against people of Afrikan descent was part
and parcel of the continued legacy of racism and discrimination in America. The ICCPR panel looked very hard at this issue requesting more information from our representative in Geneva. In addition,
during the CERD periodic review held in August, NCOBRA raised the issue of the failure of US to observe the ICERD recommendation incorporating the DDPA. And again we recommended the passing, via executive order, of HR 40 to determine the full scope of our injuries and offer special measures (reparations proposals) to reverse the injuries. (The DDPA calls on states to “halt and
reverse’ the injuries from the crimes against our humanity.)

Finally, America took an extreme beating in Geneva by the ICERD Commission when delivering its periodic report. Just yesterday, the High Commissioner of Human Rights, a native of South Africa, stated that apartheid is “flourishing” in America. Other comments summarizing the ICERD review Geneva were ‘UN Condemns US ….,” “UN Experts Blast US…, US Slammed …,” and ” UN Experts Grill US…” In addition, the experts got a very telling eyewitness account of the racial discrimination during the Ferguson uprising. 

The ACLU rightfully calls this climate produced by this blunderous showing in Geneva “ a singular opportunity to hold Washington accountable.” Add to this, Ta Nehesi Coates, single-handedly softening of white America around the potential of HR 40, and we have a perfect opportunity to
push this Administration to by-pass Congress and initiate HR 40 directly. There should be high-powered talks with the State and Justice Departments to get this done to quickly counter the negative international outlook of America via Ferguson and Geneva. 

In Chicago and Philadelphia, N’COBRA, acting as reparation enforcers have initiated campaigns to strengthen municipal slavery disclosures, utilizing the international instruments above as
a basis. In addition, Chicago has kicked off its Day of Reckoning Campaign, targeting Norfolk Southern Rail Road. NS is one of thousands of corporations that have criminally benefited from the criminal injury of our ancestors - an injury that has been passed down in various manifestations in current Afrikan descendants. Representatives of 25 community organizations met and rallied to
present the corporation with a compensation presentment. The amount of the bill was set at $900,000,000 - roughly 10% of the equity value of the company. Understanding that for nearly 100 years NS was criminally enriched by its crimes against Afrikan people. We intend to direct monies toward a comprehensive, city-wide, multi-year anti-violence initiative entitled, OUR CHILDREN OUR SOLUTIONS. 

As we move forward in the reparations movement, broadening our understanding and use of
international instruments gives us a legal ground to base our action. This is joined now to our long understood moral ground in fighting for our repair. 

A Luta Continua - The Struggle Continues
Kamm Howard
Amos N Wilson Institute GB2B 
N'COBRA www.ncobra.org
"Power concedes nothing without a demand." Frederick Douglass
Black Is Back Coalition Blackisbackcoalition.org