Logo for What is Owed?

What is Owed?

GBH News

Boston - like many cities around the US - has begun to wrestle with the notion of paying reparations to Black people to make up for 400 years of enslavement and economic exclusion. But in Boston, this debate is layered in history. It was here that slavery was first legalized in the American colonies; it was here that founders of American independence are buried alongside the Black people they enslaved; and it was here that legislation was introduced in the 1980s that became the model of a national bill calling for reparations - a bill that is still on agenda in the U.S Congress. In “What Is Owed?”, a new 7-part podcast, GBH News political reporter Saraya Wintersmith seeks to understand what reparations might look like in one of the oldest cities in America, uncovering the lessons for a successful reparations framework through the stories of its architects, past and present.

———

Credits:

Host, Producer and Writer: Saraya Wintersmith

Senior Producer: Jerome Campbell

Editorial Assistant: Mara Mellits

Editor: Paul Singer

Production oversight: Lee Hill

Mixing & Sound Design: David Goodman and Gary Mott

Theme Song and original music: Malik Williams

Artwork: Matt Welch and Mamie-Hawa Bawoh

Project Manager: Meiqian He

Managing Producer for GBH Podcasts: Devin Maverick Robins

©2023 WGBH Educational Foundation

Boston - like many cities around the US - has begun to wrestle with the notion of paying reparations to Black people to make up for 400 years of enslavement and economic exclusion. But in Boston, this debate is layered in history. It was here that slavery was first legalized in the American colonies; it was here that founders of American independence are buried alongside the Black people they enslaved; and it was here that legislation was introduced in the 1980s that became the model of a national bill calling for reparations - a bill that is still on agenda in the U.S Congress. In “What Is Owed?”, a new 7-part podcast, GBH News political reporter Saraya Wintersmith seeks to understand what reparations might look like in one of the oldest cities in America, uncovering the lessons for a successful reparations framework through the stories of its architects, past and present.

———

Credits:

Host, Producer and Writer: Saraya Wintersmith

Senior Producer: Jerome Campbell

Editorial Assistant: Mara Mellits

Editor: Paul Singer

Production oversight: Lee Hill

Mixing & Sound Design: David Goodman and Gary Mott

Theme Song and original music: Malik Williams

Artwork: Matt Welch and Mamie-Hawa Bawoh

Project Manager: Meiqian He

Managing Producer for GBH Podcasts: Devin Maverick Robins

©2023 WGBH Educational Foundation
3hr 42min
Thumbnail for "Introducing What Is Owed?".
Boston - like many cities around the US - has begun to wrestle with the notion of paying reparations to Black people to make up for 400 years of enslavement and economic exclusion.
Thumbnail for "Episode 1 - When a City Tries to Heal Itself ".
Boston, a city entrenched in the history of the American Revolution, creates a task force to explore the city’s history of slavery and economic discrimination and to consider reparations for Black citizens.
Thumbnail for "Episode 2 - Bill Owens: Boston’s Reparations Trailblazer ".
We look back at the history of efforts in Boston to explore reparations, particularly through the lens of Sen. Bill Owens, the first Black member of the Massachusetts Senate.
Thumbnail for "EpIsode 3 - Defining the Debt ".
One of the biggest challenges for a local reparations effort is determining who should get repaid.
Thumbnail for "Episode 4 - The Government’s Burden ".
Although reparations has been historically fought for by Black people, the duty will be ultimately carried out by the government.
Thumbnail for "Episode 5 - A Midwest Experiment ".
As Boston begins its first steps into considering reparations, we look at the city of Evanston, Illinois - which is already doing it.
Thumbnail for "Episode 6 - That Reluctant Conversation ".
We’re talking about the “R” words. Race. And Reparations
Thumbnail for "Episode 7 - Meanwhile, Back in Boston".
Boston’s Mayor and members of the reparations task force speak about the progress made so far, the challenges going forward, and what they think reparations could actually look like.