Its a question that can only be answered pragmatically, sadly. Because ideally the answer is yes, and they should of got them when they received emancipation. unfortunately when looked at pragmatically, it becomes increasingly impossible to reconcile to the extent of, in my opinion, being possibly profoundly detrimental to the descendants of black slaves. I mean the first thing that pops in my head besides the who, is how? Bulk payment? Programs? Bulk payment could prove to be profoundly detrimental because jt would most likely constitute absolving America for the sins of slavery and essentially end all responsibility to further assist those populations, as well as alienate them as they would of taken huge sums from the coffers of the majority population, many if not most had no responsibility, even ancestrally, for the original offense. If anything with payments large this would probably produce an even worse systemic reemergence of racial prejudice, where those that would receive it would be targeted through taxation, economic exploitation and violence.

If it was a program based reparations how could that be distinguished from the class based approach that Coates argues against, because it would be unarguably easier to establish widespread empowerment programs than hazily targeted racial ones. Sadly this is a new world struggle and no real justice will ever be seen for the indigenous who had their land stolen and were arbitrarily murdered and recklessly killed by disease, or the colonized, or the descendants of the enslaved. Really the best thing we could do as a nation is actually take care and empower our poor and disenfranchised, issue a formal apology and just intermarry everybody so we all look like the Brazilians.