Elmer Fonza shared the experience of his third great-grandfather, Nelson Bell, who arrived to California as a slave in the mid-1800s.

“As I look back at my family's journey, I can only think of the hardships Nelson Bell must have endured,” he said.

During his speech, Fonza said Bell was also sold two times and worth about $600.

Yvette Porter Moore, a genealogist, shared how racism has harmed her family.

She received a huge round of applause when she recommended that the costs for DNA testing and genealogy to prove lineage for reparations be paid for as part of the reparations redress.

One woman said she hoped that the state’s recommendation for reparations includes Black children in foster care, who she said are subject to abuse.

“We need public oversight,” the woman said at the hearing.

Other residents recounted the traumatic experiences of their Black ancestors. One man said members of his family experienced the Tulsa Massacre and added that his family has “continually” been persecuted in the state his “whole life.”

Another speaker pushed for financial payments and an apology.

“Black people do not need more programs,” the man said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom was praised in many circles for signing the bill that created the task force, but he is not present at this final hearing. His attention is currently on wildfires in the state.

Jon Burgess, a firefighter whose family is seeking land taken from ancestors in Coloma, near Sacramento, made it clear that reparations, in his mind, are not about government, although it will be Newsom who signs any proposed bill into law.

“Gavin, as a battalion chief in the city of Sacramento," Burgess said, "the last thing the fires need is another politician.”

Many of the speakers today are speaking on behalf of their ancestors, citing the names of family members with deep roots in the state.

“I’m here today to stand on the shoulders of my ancestors starting with my father, who at the age of 14 worked at a funeral home. He was told to throw the black bodies up against the fence and wait until all the whites were processed,” Gil Wilkerson said, also citing her great-grandmother, "who committed suicide because she couldn't take care of her children after slavery.”

The financial compensation part of reparations is a concern, evident by a woman yelling during the hearing: “It’s my money and I want it now.”

Meanwhile, reactions over the Supreme Court's affirmative action ruling continue to pour in.

America’s leading civil rights organizations condemned the conservative-dominated Supreme Court's decision, with one top group accusing the high court of turning back the clock on the nation’s history of racial progress.

“Today the Supreme Court has bowed to the personally held beliefs of an extremist minority,” NAACP President and Chief Executive Derrick Johnson said in a statement. “We will not allow hate-inspired people in power to turn back the clock and undermine our hard-won victories. The tricks of America’s dark past will not be tolerated.”

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Task force chair Kamika Moore opened the momentous hearing to public comment.

Danny Brown, an audience member, invited the crowd to rise to their feet for a call-and-response rally.

“What do we want?” Brown asked. “Reparations!” the audience chanted back.

“When do we want it?” Brown asked. “Now!” the crowd replied.

Other members of the public spoke about the overdue importance of reparations.

“Reparations is about repair,” Reggie Romain said.

“There’s no reason for us to keep proving what has already been proven. There's no reason for you to say we don't have enough money,” Lakeisha Millmain said, adding that “we have a debt that needs to be paid.”