The topic of slavery reparations makes everyone run to their political team and get into battle mode. But just for fun, what if we looked at it like a puzzle to solve instead of a fight?

The puzzle is how to make everyone happy at the same time. Seems impossible on the surface. But maybe we are just limiting ourselves in our thinking. Let me see if I can fix that.

Let’s stipulate that any solution that makes one group happy and another group unhappy is not a good enough solution. It has to make everyone happy with both its scale and structure. Impossible?

Here’s how I’d do it. The biggest cause of systemic racism in modern America is teachers unions. They prevent the kind of improvements that would MOST level the playing field for all low income people.

Republicans would open their wallets wide to make schools better. But they don’t have the political clout to create a situation worth funding because of unions blocking competition. Black America has the political clout to change that.

So imagine a grand reparation deal that asks Republicans to back massive education improvements in return for Black support in standing up to the teachers unions. Don’t we all win?

This might not be the solution that works. But the larger point is that sometimes it helps to reframe your fights as puzzles. This is one of those times.