A Hudson Valley NAACP branch is starting a conversation on reparations for slavery and what that could look like on a local level.

The NAACP White Plains-Greenburgh branch came away with a message at the public library in Elmsford - however you feel about reparations, there's action you can take to move the discussion forward.

The group learned, on a federal level, that legislation to explore the idea of reparations has been under consideration for nearly 40 years, but on a state level, the legislature passed a bill this past session. 

The bill would create a commission to study the issue and make recommendations. Gov. Kathy Hochul has not yet signed it. 

Speakers encouraged the crowd to urge Hochul to do so because many other questions about reparations can't be answered until the topic is formally explored.

"Discrimination against Black people has hampered our efforts to fully participate in the national economy, to build wealth in spite of our tenacity and bold adventures on every front from education to investments while sustaining our health in an unhealthy environment," an organizer told the crowd. 

Questions raised during the discussion that couldn't yet be answered include who would benefit, what it could cost, and why some Black people oppose reparations.

The NAACP hopes to plan a part two of the discussion in the future.