Blair’s apology for slavery
There has been a great deal made of Blair’s “apology” for the British empire’s role in slavery.
Slavery is wrong, there is no doubt about that.
However, it should not be forgotten that the majority of African slaves were “bought” from African kings and merchants in exchange for a variety of products. Especially guns.
The Africans were enslaved by their own rulers. The European nations took advantage of their greed.
There were some exceptions, and history does record a number of military campaigns to capture slaves, but these account for a very small minority of the 10 million slaves that were traded between 1650 & 1900.
Blair’s apology is nothing more than a farcical attempt to win favor for Labour with British African voters.
Perhaps we should ask for apologies from the Danes for their Viking raiding parties?
December 14th, 2006 at 1:18 pm
It is of interest that the Jews did claim and receive reparations. How many of the Jews who died in concentration camps received compensation? Not one, but the descendants did. If you can find those who can trace a link to the Viking raiding practices then by all means have them make a claim - but you are not being serious here are you? The Atlantic African slave trade saw white captains, white enterprise from Elizabeth 1 with Hawkins and Drake and Morgan and other bandits, and white plantation owners, do what indeed was a crime against humanity. Many cities in the UK are literally built on free extracted black labour and those who survive in the Caribbean have a legacy of poverty. King sugar was sent to Britain to b e processed and sold back to the colonies at a higher and not a stalk of sugar cane ever grew in Britain, except under green house conditions. The wealth left the areas where it was generated and left likewise under-developed societies with weak economies.
That collaborators existed on the African continent is a fact, but is this not also true for the Jews and just about every other oppressed group? Collaborators and resistance seem to go hand in hand all the way through history ( even your invading Danes met some resistnace - chuckle - - and even to this day in occupied Iraq. So, is this any reason not to address the claim?
There is a very strong case for reparations and you will find more details at http://www.ar-africare.com.
December 30th, 2006 at 7:25 am
You’re right. I was not being serious about the vikings.
However, I think that we have to remember that all of these events are historical, and I think it does no one any good to dwell too much on history. Learn from it, yes. Dwell on it, no.
Along with the African slaves, were also Irish convicts, who also would quite rightly claim the same reparations.
However, I feel that the whole issue of reparations is a minefield. I also feel it diminishes those that receive them. Are the descendants of African slaves unable to better themselves by any other means than receiving reparations from governments which have not condoned slavery for over a century? I do not believe for one moment that this is the case.
Far greater atrocities have been committed the world over, and still are, and I think we would be better served by trying to make the world as it is today a better place. Perhaps any reparations should be given instead to the Africans whose families were not sold into slavery, residing still in Africa, and still die each year due to far more extreme levels of poverty, disease, war, and other causes due mainly to their corrupt governments. The descendants of many slaves, especially those that were sent to the US, are far better off than their fellow Africans who were ‘lucky’ enough not to be sold into slavery.
July 9th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
Perhaps we should ask for apologies from the Danes for their Viking raiding parties?
For immensely improving the British gene-pool? Get a grip!