Sunny Hostin renewed her call for reparations during Wednesday’s episode of The View, arguing that the Trump administration’s approach to American history is part of an effort to avoid confronting the legacy of slavery and racial discrimination.
The discussion centered on recent disputes surrounding the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Hostin, however, took the conversation a step further by directly connecting the debate to reparations. She argued that efforts to reshape how slavery and race are discussed in public institutions are ultimately designed to prevent the country from fully acknowledging the historical record.
According to Hostin, confronting that history is a necessary first step before any meaningful reconciliation or financial compensation can occur for the descendants of enslaved Americans.
The View co-host has been an outspoken advocate for reparations for Black Americans, arguing that the United States still has unfinished work when it comes to addressing the legacy of slavery and racial discrimination. But critics have repeatedly pointed to a surprising revelation from her own family history that emerged during an appearance on PBS’s Finding Your Roots.
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During the genealogy program, Hostin learned that her maternal ancestors traced back to Spain and that one branch of her family had been involved in the slave trade before relocating to Puerto Rico. According to historian Henry Louis Gates Jr., one of Hostin’s ancestors was likely involved in the slave trade and owned at least one enslaved person. The discovery left Hostin visibly emotional, saying she was “deeply disappointed” by what she learned about her family’s past.
A few days later, Hostin addressed the revelation during an episode of The View. While acknowledging her family’s history, she made clear that it had not changed her views on reparations.
The View host Sunny Hostin is a staunch proponent of slavery reparations.
She went on PBS to explore her ancestry.
Turns out, she is the descendant of slave-owners from Spain who owned Africans.
This was her reaction when she found out: pic.twitter.com/yFBgjMOSGc
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 8, 2024
“I still believe in reparations, by the way,” Hostin said, adding that people had been sending her messages claiming she no longer had standing to support the policy because of her ancestry. She rejected that argument and said she still believes America has significant work to do in achieving racial justice.
Hostin has said that she had always believed her mother’s family were printers and journalists before discovering their actual connection to slavery. She described learning the truth as painful and said her mother was equally devastated after hearing the findings.
According to Hostin, her mother even cried after learning about their family’s history, telling her daughter that perhaps her lifelong connection to Black culture reflected “an atonement” for what their ancestors had done. Hostin said the discovery was difficult but ultimately gave her a fuller understanding of her family’s history.
Despite that explanation, critics have continued to accuse the television host of hypocrisy.
Hostin has consistently maintained that the revelation actually reinforced her belief that confronting uncomfortable history is important. She said learning the truth about her ancestors did not diminish her commitment to racial justice and instead helped her better understand how dramatically her family had changed over generations.
The genealogy special also uncovered additional surprises unrelated to slavery. Hostin learned that she had relatives she never knew existed, including several previously unknown aunts and uncles on her father’s side, and discovered that actor Anthony Ramos is her cousin. She described those discoveries as a bright spot amid what she otherwise called an emotionally challenging experience.
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