Why do I feel defensive about reparations even though I support equity?

You're not alone, and your defensiveness isn't character flaw—it's worth examining. Sor Juana spent her life navigating systems that asked her to be grateful for scraps while denying her full humanity. She noticed something crucial: injustice runs so deep that even people *opposing* it can feel threatened by concrete repair. That's because reparations make abstract injustice suddenly *real and material*. Equity in theory feels virtuous. Reparations in practice feel like loss—even if what's being "lost" is unearned advantage. The defensiveness often surfaces as questions: *Why them specifically? How much is enough? What about me?* These aren't stupid questions; they're revealing ones. They show where you've internalized the zero-sum thinking that injustice relies on. Real equity isn't a seesaw where someone else's gain means your loss. But our economy is structured that way, so the fear is rational. The work is noticing that fear, naming it, and choosing to support justice anyway. That's integrity—not pretending you don't feel defensive, but not letting the feeling decide your ethics.