Chew on this: if we agree it is appropriate to pay reparations on behalf of those who were enslaved and/or killed as a part of a systematic system of slavery, how could we not pay reparations to the descendants of Native Americans that were uprooted, killed or otherwise had their way of life destroyed, our having stolen vast swaths of land that they inhabited prior to 1900? (Yes, we were still practicing genocide against Native Americans long after slavery’s end.)

We can not justify paying reparations for slavery without also doing it for the genocide of Native Americans. And, if we actually decide to pay reparations... we will bankrupt this country in the process — which will leave all of us worse off in uncounted ways.

And, then we would still owe the Japanese we interned during WWII... and, while we are at it, what about all those we discriminated against at other times?

It’s an idea that’s nice in thought but cannot be done in practice without complete disruption of society and government.

So, be careful with what you think we should do. It is not practical nor is it reasonable.

The concept that I would be required to pay for the negative behavior of past generations is absurd. Past generations were the product of the times, culture, current belief symptoms and a general lack of scientific knowledge. It looks more like a patronizing political give away,

My short answer is maybe

I don't think it is possible to determine who would be eligible or even determine who should pay.

I like the idea of making education and other resources available to lift people out of poverty since it would address so much more than just handing a bit of money.

If you pay reparations for a country that is not organized it will only scale up corruption and nothing will change. And most of those places are so deep down on chaos that it is impossible to help at this point. Send money is just feed swiss back accounts.
Make your companies pay the same salaries in other countries that they pay at yours, this way the few good educated people from those places will not move out. The you can start educating people that will stay and build that country.
As far as I see if you finance a good university on a destroyed country you will only be giving tickets to those students to move out.

I don't know how they could possibly figure it out. How about getting rid of the institutional racism in this so called "land of the free". That would make all people of color a lot happier.

I tend to think something more like South Africa's "truth and reconciliation commision" or similar process would make more symbolic sense and bring more closure. Reparations could be taken as whitey buying his way out of responsibility. It's a mistake to imagine that money is a substitute for acknowledging and affirming wrongs and taking actual responsibility for them.

To the extent that structural racism and poverty are a problem (and they are), they should be addressed directly with educational and economic programs designed to lift people out of poverty and other forms of discrimination and disadvantage and ignorance, whether those are the knock-on effects of slavery or of any other injustice.