Not so fast. Let's take this seriously.
Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled her first cryptocurrency-specific policy yesterday, promising to help protect African Americans who invest in cryptocurrencies. This is a standard theme for the Democratic Party in 2024, where, as Nik points out, the cause of anti-racism is alive and well.
For the sake of argument, let's leave aside even Nik's most valid criticisms.
I, too, am concerned that without specific policies, a Harris administration could use this policy to prevent black Americans from realizing the benefits of owning bitcoin.
For now, let's address the very real issue of reparations. The United States is a democracy, and the data prove it more than 70% of African Americans they feel the federal government should pay them back for the suffering of their ancestors (compared to only 12% of white Americans). Three-quarters also believe the federal government should make the payment.
Let's also consider the fact that, as Harris' opponent Donald Trump has so clearly stated, bitcoin is the best chance the United States has to pay an exorbitant sum like the bitcoin-and-crypto-amid-price-boom/”>National debt of 35 trillion dollars. (Trump's own quote is that we could “pay a little cryptocurrency” to absolve the deficit.)
Some estimates suggest that the value of reparations for slavery will be over 12 billion dollarsMaybe it's time for Democrats to consider bitcoin as part of the solution, not an industry to be reined in with onerous regulation.
After all, the Trump campaign has already made it clear: it believes that the treasure trove of bitcoin-125711893.html”>more than 200,000 btc (confiscated from dark markets and criminals) is an asset that can be used strategically.
With this in mind, why shouldn't Democrats consider bitcoin as a similar strategic investment, buying and selling bitcoin for goals aligned with their constituents?
Sure, one could argue that using America's bitcoin reserves should be a bipartisan effort and that their use should benefit everyone. But it is clear that any payment for reparations would require either additional money printing (and a currency debate) or taxes.
Pay repairs in bitcoin (as others have suggested) make cash payments descendants of slaves) would be convenient and useful, and would protect these Americans and their wealth from continued degradation by American policymakers.
Call it a half-baked idea, perhaps. But for the Harris Administration, it could mean fulfilling long-broken promises. For millions of people, the institution of slavery, where black people were bought and sold as property, is a painful story that remains true.
Like bitcoin itself, leaving this behind could be a once-in-a-century opportunity.
