Reparations for Colonialism Beyond Legal Responsibility

Reparations for colonialism and colonial-era atrocities have moved from an unrealized demand of citizens, politicians, and thinkers in the Global South to a project with some results in the real world. Key markers include the return of numerous art objects from museums in the Global North to their countries of origin;1 the release of the Caribbean Community and Common Market’s (CARICOM) proposal for reparations;2 and Namibia’s agreement with Germany on compensation for the German genocide against the Herero people in 1904–083—along with the resultant controversy. These developments follow earlier claims for reparations directed to—and their eventual acceptance by—the governments of Canada and New Zealand, domestic courts in the Netherlands and the UK, and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.4 At the same time, it remains the case that reparations for colonialism are overall few and far between.