Should the slaves accept Virginia's apology?

Question

The State of Virginia has officially apologized for slavery. The slaves have yet to announce whether they will accept the apology or not. Should they?

Answer 1

your a retard what slaves

Answer 2

Since there are no living ex-slaves, my guess is they are apologizing to their descendants. How will they, as a group, accept the apology being a couple of hundred years too late? There are probably two ways to look at the situation they are presently in. Their people were uprooted from their homeland and way of life and forced to be prisoners at hard-labor and sold like cattle. Very horrible and difficult to imagine. In the South, they suffered discrimination for many years. However, they are now living in a great country and have fought hard to achieve the equality and opportunities that are now available to them. Hopefully, this apology will bolster a sense of great pride in their achievements. Since the people who are apologizing never had slaves, it is apparently something in their ancestry that is seen as a wrong that needed to be acknowledged. It would be fruitless not to accept the apology.

Answer 3

1st these so called representatives sure were desperate to find something to do to come up with this crap;the people of Virginia should impeach them all, as they sure are useless,
but, since we are on the subject of apology's for slavery don't you think the Egyptians should apologize for holding our people as slaves for 900 years? what about the tribes in Africa who owned these slaves before they sold them to the white traders? or the northern states who also owned slaves before they. passed a law to rid of them because they were so worthless,so
lets see who owned slaves Africa, and they still do , America, not in the last 150 years, Rome, china, and all other Asian country's. Spanish.England, the whole middle east, and still do, this is taking to much time, about if not all society's owned slaves at one time or the other, and every race has been in slavery at one time, so why do the blacks get such preferential treatment?
911 how do youcompare Iraq with slavery??
Aston, try your symphathetic B.S some wher else, I sold insurance in watts, and writing up a policy was weird, there would be 10 kids like stairs and not one had the same last name
and you wonder where you came from, I will bet at least 95% of the people in America can't trace their family history back more than 5 generations, so don't be giving us that crap,
romare, where have you been ? as long as the blacks want touse slavery as an excuse for their being lazy and not wanting to work hard and get ahead nothing else is going to work for them , they have got to stand on their own feet as many of the others are doing, instead of crying and feeling sorry for them selves,

Answer 4

What slaves? There have not been any in the US for 142 years. There are not even any children of ex-slaves still alive. While Virginia did a nice thing, I think the northern states need to do the same thing. Yes indeed, there were slaves kept in the northern states as well. If we are going to cry in the beer of those who came from slavery, lets not forget the white emigrants that came as indentured servants either. The wealthy need to apologize to them as well.

Answer 5

In a marriage. It never works out when someone brings up the past, and throws it in their partners face. Sadly, we don't live like that, in a society as a whole. So this debate has no end until someone decides that its done and over with. Im not sure if either party is willing to do that, because they choose not to be the bigger person. Yes. Slaves had it terrible. No person should of been treated like that. We don't have slaves today tho, so why are those who are not guilty, apologizing for that? Live in today. Both whites and blacks need to do that. Just my opinion.

Answer 6

Obviously, the people who are apologizing now have nothing to apologize for. However, the notion that that there is no one to accept that apology is quite simply, wrong.

This is an attempt for one group of citizens to reach out to another, to try to make peace with the past. This is an attempt for one group to say, "Yes, my heritage stood for something I do not believe in, and I wish to state that emphatically. Please accept my acknowledgment, and recognize my sincerity."

When a person, or a group of persons, reaches out to another, it is VITAL that the group that is sought out accepts that extension, that gracious offer. Does it change the past? Of course not, the past cannot change. But, without question, the pain, and significance of the past can wain.

My concern is that there are people in power who know that they cannot accept such an offer without losing their power, their purpose. These people fear that without a cause, they will wither away and become irrelevant. I know without question that Gandhi, and King would have embraced the opportunity to become irrelevant. They were sincere about their cause, and would have been content to have brought about change, which they did. I can assure you that they would have found other causes had their crusades proved a success, but they certainly would have acknowledged a mission accomplished - not with a boast or brag, but with a sigh of relief, and a smile toward heaven.

At some point, the powers that be must be willing to concede that they have won a victory, or that victory will never be won at all....

Answer 7

Are there any slaves still alive there? And if so, why is the state apologizing. Shouldn't the slave owners apologize? After all, if they hadn't bought slaves to begin with, there wouldn't have been a market for slaves. Hence, no slavery.

Answer 8

Despite the fact that I suspect you're trying to be cute, I'll give you a serious answer: yes. Any time anyone apologizes sincerely for anything, it should be graciously accepted. And if the rest of the country would apologize for slavery, I believe it would take us a long way to the racial healing our country so desperately needs.

Answer 9

since there are no slaves any longer no one will speak up. slavery was abolished in the 1800s this was an apology for virginias part in it

Answer 10

I'm sure they will accept it as soon as Joan of Arc will accept 'The Church's' un-excommunication. On the other hand, I do not see the need for them to apologize. I know slavery was and is wrong, but its been over one-hundred years since it was abolished. My great-grandmother couldn't vote, but I do not wish to vote twice. Sorry if this offends anyone, I'm not trying to sound offensive.

Edit: In response to the person below me (someone with no name): I agree that we should understand that our ancestors were wrong in their acts and judgments, but we should already be past the apologizing stage. As long as we live in peace with one another, loving each other, everything should be fine as is. I don't even understand why people would want reparations. Like I already stated, my great-grandmother couldn't vote, but I don't want to have two votes, just to make up for her not being able to do so.

Answer 11

haven't seen any slaves running around in a long time. Unless of course you are speaking of the slaves in Africa!! But wait VA, doesn't have anything to do with them.
Get Over the past, why not try to stop what is happening NOW?
Or are you people afraid to look a the real truth of things!