A legal path for reparations, originally championed by attorney Johnny Cochran in the 1990s, is presented as more effective than a purely political path. By treating reparations as a legal claim for unpaid labor, the movement could bypass the "handout" stigma and focus on appointing federal judges sympathetic to the case. The discussion notes that current political offers of $100 billion to $500 billion are "laughable" compared to the actual calculated debt.