Olympia’s ongoing study of reparations options will aid statewide efforts
The Olympia City Council last week held a study session to discuss research findings and a path forward for considering policies that would provide reparations for descendants of slaves.
Assistant City Manager Susan Grisham said there’s now state-level reparations actions moving forward that Olympia’s study will help inform.
Grisham said $300,000 will fund the Charles Mitchell and George Washington Bush study on reparative action for Washington state. She said the study will take place from 2025 to 2027 and will produce “detailed policy proposals that will be a roadmap for implementation.”
She said the study analyzes the lasting impact of slavery and state policies on the direct descendants of enslaved African people, and is exploring remedies such as direct payments, education, investment, Economic Opportunity Programs and criminal justice reform.
Olympia’s study on reparative actions will be shared with the Department of Commerce’s Commission on African American Affairs to inform their research.
“I feel like we’re giving them a bit of a head start,” Grisham said.
Mayor Dontae Payne said part of the work the state commission will be doing is hiring a consultant to determine how to provide reparations and how much genealogy will play a part.
“I cannot tell you who my great grandparents are. I can’t tell you who my great great grandparents are,” Payne said. “So if you are African American, and you are in this country, and all of a sudden you stop, and you cannot continue to trace your lineage back, that is evidence enough that you are a descendant of an enslaved person, most likely.”
Grisham said the state study is in part named after Charles Mitchell, who was enslaved as a child and brought to Olympia. He escaped to freedom at 13.
“That’s a reminder of both injustice and resilience,” she said. “His legacy calls us to acknowledge the past and take action in the present.”
Actions so far
Grisham said reparations can be direct cash payments, land, housing, education, health care and more. She said Black residents continue to experience the lasting effects of slavery, including systemic racism and policies that have denied them access to wealth and homeownership.
“According to data provided by the Black Home Initiative, approximately 42% of Black households in Washington state have zero net worth, compared to 14% of white households,” Grisham said. “Black households in Thurston County have the lowest rate of home ownership of any racial or ethnic group.”
She said the home ownership rate in Thurston County for white, non-Hispanic households is 70%, while the home ownership rate for Black households is 51%.
She said the disparity is higher in Olympia, where the home ownership rate for Black households is only 34%.
Payne said the City Council passed a resolution regarding reparations in November that m=nincluded several actionable items that have already been accomplished. First is requesting that the state study the issue of reparations, and second is requesting city staff to conduct additional research.
He said the city also joined the Black Home Initiative along with King and Pierce counties, which was another item on the action list.
Dave Wolfrom with consulting firm Truclusion talked the City Council through a list of reparative actions other cities have taken that could work in Olympia. He said the city could create a business micro loan program and business startup programs, as well as provide grant funding to businesses. Wolfram said these sorts of programs help build generational wealth.
He said cities that have undertaken similar programs include Amherst, Massachusetts, and Asheville, North Carolina.
Wolfram said another option is cash payouts, but that hasn’t been done much yet. He said state governments haven’t provided permanent funding sources for cash payouts.
Wolfram said the city also could invest in down payment assistance and loan pool programs. He said the City of Evanston in Illinois has provided $25,000 for families to use toward down payments or home repairs.
Support from the state
Payne said he thinks the conversation needs to focus first on direct cash payments, but the city isn’t in a position to do such a thing. He said the state is the one that has to lead the way for cities to have some guidance on how to pursue funding.
“The state needs to, they’ll take action, and then other cities will kind of watch and follow suit, and that’s exactly what will need to happen when it comes to that kind of direct compensation,” he said.
Payne said there are some reparations options he wouldn’t call reparations, such as establishing a private fund.
“And the reason that it is not is because you have individual citizens or people contributing to a pot of money that would then be disseminated to Black community members,” he said. “Reparations is not charity.”
Payne said the city will continue exploring how to tackle reparations in an effort to address many of the economic disparities and disproportionate impacts on the Black community.
This story was originally published June 30, 2025 at 10:02 AM with the headline "Olympia’s ongoing study of reparations options will aid statewide efforts."
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