Black women were enslaved and forced to do all sorts of work. However, As mentioned above, Black women were considered important in the family, they held a position of respect and power within their family. White women, on the other hand, were not forced to work but lived oppression within their own homes. White women had no control over decision making or money matters. They were considered inferior to their White husbands. They even got repeatedly raped by their partners. It was difficult for Black women and White women to see each other as allies since there was jealousy to a degree from White women towards Black women since their White husbands would rape Black women and sometimes, they would get pregnant as a result of the rape. This was very difficult for White women to process. However, and important similarity is that they were both subjected to sexual violence from white men towards both black women and white women, which could have been a strong reason to become allies.

Unfortunately, the system of slavery continues to impact Black communities in the U.S. today in multiple forms. The most obvious example is the prevalent racism issue that our country faces. Not only has there been hate from other races towards Black people, but racism has evolved in many forms. For example, nowadays we see hate crimes, police brutality, institutional racism among others that put Blacks in a disadvantaged and unfortunate position. After the abolitions of slavery, came mass incarceration of Black people.

It was very common that for Whites to incarcerate Blacks, as Blacks were experiencing serious economic hardship and other difficulties. A common reason Blacks were being punished with jail was that they were caught stealing. Blacks stole because they couldn’t find another way to survive. They were not given jobs, so they had no other way to provide for themselves and their families. Today this informal way of slavery through mass incarceration still happens. Blacks are being targeted way more than any other races by the police and other citizens. Black people do commit crimes, just like any other race, but are often harassed unjustifiably by law enforcement. In another topic, today, economic hardship and lack of opportunities afflict the Black community. They often earn very little money, and many of them are not able to afford a dignified life. There is even a low rate of Blacks graduating from college.

The delicate topic of reparations requires a lot more of the attention that it is given today. It is true that the economy of our country is successful mostly as a result of slave work. This is such a delicate matter in which everyone that benefits from the economy of this country is responsible for reparations. All of us that are constructing a life in the United States are to contribute to reparations in whichever way we can. My parents were undocumented (from Mexico) when they had me. My parents paid the hospital bill in advance, so that I could be born in San Diego and have a better-quality life when I grew up.

According to my knowledge, I am not directly connected to slavery. However, now that I am an adult, it is my duty to participate and contribute to the level I can. I understand that reparations are my responsibility too as a citizen that benefits from the economy and opportunities of our country. I strongly believe that my role in reparations is to educate myself as much as possible about the difficulties and adversities that the Black community has gone through and is currently going through in order to eventually advocate within my professional area for people of color. I chose Social Work as my profession. Social Work is a helping profession that allows to cooperate with society to assist the disadvantaged and to be the voice of the voiceless and the vulnerable. The Black community is definitely a vulnerable population.

Social Work is a career that has many paths. I have chosen Child Welfare Services to practice professionally. This career will allow me to support Black families and, in this way, contribute to bettering and balancing the inequalities Black families go through. Restoring the hope through trauma informed practice is part of my job, so I strongly believe that I can contribute largely to the lives of the multiple families of color that will be referred to me someday. Aside this, if there ever was a tax to pay to contribute to support Black families financially, I would be happy to participate.