Have white people and the government apologized for slavery?

Question

if so who did and when??????? and how did they make up for being so cruel?

i am not african american by the way... im a young hispanic male.

I find it funny that some of your answers are basically saying "we arent the only ones who did it".

Answer 1

they probably should.....they say things like they dont care then wonder why blacks are so pissed off

Answer 2

I think your question is a fair one, but should be followed by other questions that look at human cruelty on a global level. To be equal, I wonder if Africans apologized officially to other Africans for rounding them up, and literally shoving them on the waiting boats for America 250 years ago. Or, maybe other Africans should apologize officially for the slaughter of one million Rwandans in just this last century!

The fact is what happened to black Americans in the 19th century was a horrible atrocity. However, that was a long time ago, and to focus on some kind of retribution from a modern government that is just as offended, or whites who are just as repulsed by slavery is a little far-fetched. No offense.

People everywhere are being oppressed and enslaved right now. If your motivations are for equality, maybe finding out how you can help others NOW would be a way for you to find peace with what happened in this country two hundred years ago.

Answer 3

You are talking about an apology for something that happened 150 years ago. Who would white people apologize too. Graves? And as far as the "white people" thing. I'm white but most of my family has traveled from Ireland to America since the late 1890s and early 1900s. The part of my family that was here before the civil war 1840s came over as endentured servents and were basically owned. They never owned anyone. So, who should I apologize to? and for what? The history of slavery is just that history. It was terrible and I'm thankful its gone. But for one race to apologize to another for something they had no control over or responsibility for would be wrong.

example: If your next door neighbor stole something from you and the police made him give it back. Should your great great great great great grand children expect or deserve an apology? Now if you want to talk about how blacks have been treated over the last couple generations you need to state a new question.

Answer 4

Slavery was a way of life for people ever since the very beginnings of civilization. Every ethnic group has been slaves at some point - even our modern word for it came from a time when most slaves were of slavic origin (white).

When this country abolished slavery, it put to an end an cruelty over 5000 years old that was once the very basis of civilization. This is something to be proud of, not to apologize for. The goverments who should apologize are the ones still doing it!

There is no way to make up for slavery - especially since everyone on Earth can claim their ancestors having been the victims of slavery at one point or another. The best we can do is make sure it never happens again.

Answer 5

I don't really think the government has ever formally apologized for slavery. Then again, though, those who instituted and supported slavery are long gone.

Unfortunately, "making up" for something like that is a rather sticky issue. The modern generation of caucasian people had nothing to do with slavery, and I would think many of them feel that slavery was a horrible chapter in history but they should not be held personally accountable for it.

It would be like punishing the modern generation of Germans for the holocaust. Every civilization bears the sins of their forebears, but when a society learns from a mistake and tries to make amends in a general context... there's no need to keep demanding justice for things that cannot be changed and have no one alive to condemn for them.

There have been government and social reforms that have purportedly been to make amends for segregation, if not slavery. Affirmative action comes to mind, though society is at a point where many can argue that it's not necessary.

Good luck in your search for information on this subject, though. Hope this helped a little.

Answer 6

We have more white slavery today by enforcing white people to pay for what their and your ancestors did - why is it all blamed on white people only? Isn't it time to bury the hatchet and love one another no matter what colour? The more that people like to call prejudice, the more we will live with colour discrimination. Let's accept each other for who we are not what we are. The more that we separate each other by colour, the more racism there will be. Let's move forward not backward. Let's stop living in the past and make a future without colour. Thank you for your question.

Answer 7

I'm white and do not have anything to apologize for .Slavery did not just start in the united states .Look up some history . Egyptians had slaves before Christ. Slavery has been around 2000 years .In many third world countries it still exist ,but nobody wants to talk about that.

Answer 8

I don't know why this would just point to white and black people. Slavery has been around in a lot of other countries other than africa. Some even enslaved their own. The past stays in the past, no one can forget what their forefathers went through. But time only moves forward and, just that.

Answer 9

Good luck on finding someone alive that has owned a slave. Personally I have never owned a slave so I don't owe anyone an apology and if you do your homework you will know that whites were slaves also. I'm white and I don't think anyone owes me an apology for using whites as slaves. I choose not to play the victim role.

Answer 10

I think government should appologise for slavery as soon as the decendants of slaves have paid for their ancesters boat ride and room and board for all those years with interest. Payup or go back and see if you still know how to throw a spear.

Answer 11

My kind were slaves to the Romans 2000 years ago and were killed for sport in every kind of way. I'm still waiting on an apology from them for that knowing I'll never hear it.