A New Bill Aims to Pay Back Black Vets Excluded from the G.I. Bill

The G.I. Bill of 1944 provided free education, unemployment pay and home loans for millions of veterans returning from fighting in World War II. These benefits helped to expand the American middle class after the war.But many returning Black veterans were excluded because of segregation. And that exclusion helped widen the wealth gap between white and Black Americans. A bill in Congress would repair some of that harm by paying reparations to the families of nearly one million Black veterans who served in World War II. NPR's Quil Lawrence spoke with the family of Bill Dabney, who fought in the little known Barrage Balloon Battalion, about what that money would mean to them.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@.

READ: How Systemic Inequities Kept Many Black Veterans From Building Black Prosperity - IAVA

FDR and the GI Bill – Forward with Roosevelt

Black veterans were denied GI Bill benefits after WWII. It's time to fix that.

Systematic Inequality - Center for American Progress

Black Veterans Less Likely to Get VA Claims Approved

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Many Black veterans were denied G.I. Bill benefits after World War II. Some lawmakers want to correct the historical error. - CBS News

Legislation Would Pay Families of Black Veterans Denied GI Benefits – NBC4 Washington

What was the G.I. Bill (1944)? - Boot Camp & Military Fitness Institute

No, the GI Bill Did Not Make Racial Inequality Worse

How America's Vast Racial Wealth Gap Grew: By Plunder - The New York Times

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