Should compensation be paid for slavery?

Question

Archbishop of Canterbury has said publically that he thinks so and others agree. Personally I think this guy is moron, on that basis the Italians (Romens), Scandenavians (Vikings), Germans (Nazis) etc etc should all apologise and compensate their 'victims', plus who does the money get paid to since all of the actual victims of slavery are dead (since it was 200 years ago they are talking about).

What do you think? Is this yet more liberal and PC nonsense or do they have a point?

Answer 1

Take a GOOD look at history and see who took their OWN people as slaves, and then look at who DID AWAY with it all.

THEN let them say WE should apologise ! ! !

Answer 2

Slavery was an abomination in the world psyche. It was an unforgivable crime against humanity.

However ... we weren't born then, how can we be held responsible for the actions of our ancestors and only a few can trace their roots back that far, I certainly can't.

The best way to say we're sorry for the slavery of yesterday is to eradicate it today. It's still going on. Remote African villages are still being ransacked and people; mainly children are being kidnapped, a lot end up in the Middle East; I've just read a book about a young girl who was kidnapped and became a slave in the 80s/90s.

However, humanity has never and in my opinion never will be humane. We all know that the Romans thought they were civilised and yet they had slaves (From Britain, when am I going to get compensation?) and indulged in all kinds of immoral acts - by our standards

I'm also a born again Christian and the things my brothers and sisters endured in the first century is beyond belief; can I be compensated for the emotional trauma of realising that had I lived then, it could have been me?

Then there's the Vikings and the Normans. I live very close to the north East coast and would have been plagued by invaders. I'd have had no peace. When is all this .... compensation .... going to start flooding in?

Answer 3

Of course it is nonsense. Who should pay and to whom. It is another left wing rouse to try and make us feel guilty for something that happened years ago. Long after slavery was abolished (Britain being the prime mover), the Arabs were still dealing in slaves on the east coast of Africa. Also, the Royal navy used to stop and search foreign vessels, and if they found slaves aboard, returned them to the west coast of Africa.

Britain certainly didn't invent slavery, not only the Arabs, but African tribes were also involved. It was Christian values that helped stop the slave trade. There have been many white slaves down the ages. In the middle ages, serfs toiled on the land for their lords and masters. Children worked in the mills and boys were sent up chimneys.

You can't impose modern values onto the past. You could say that many of the descendants of former slaves have benefited by now being citizens of America and/or the Caribbean islands. Much of Africa is still struggling.

Why the obsession with the British involvement in the slave trade? Many other countries have been involved down the ages, and some are still at it.

Answer 4

Slavery is a grevious stain on our conscience. We should be allowed to forget about it. What would assuage the anger of the slave families? What reparations would wipe the slate clean? Who would pay and who would we pay to? As it was the done thing at the time and the fashion then could anyone really be indicted in a court of law today for actions of their forbears?

I think the answer is no. The best thing we can do is forget about it - try to help the countries who we removed slaves from by forgiving debt etc. if owed and make sure that we enforce the anti-slavery laws to the best of our ability. Equal rights for all!

Answer 5

Absolutely not!!
I am not taking responsibility for something that happened 200 yrs ago and furthermore I am not compensating anyone for it either as the people who are looking for the compensation have never been enslaved nor have I done the enslaving!
A money making exercise by some opportunists that's all it is.

Answer 6

Yes it is total nonesense. You can't compensate dead people and their great great grandchildren are, in fact, already better off because without slavery they would mostly be living in Nigeria, Somalia, Biafra, Rwanda or one of several more desperately poor war torn African hell holes if they were not already dead from starvation, disease or war atrocities. As it is they are mostly living in the richest country in the world, land of the brave and home of the free,

The entire history of the world is potential compensation material, the Spanish to the Incas and Aztecs, the White Americans to the Native Americans and to the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Mongols to all of Central and East Asia, The British to every courtry ever painted in pink on a map etc etc etc.

Answer 7

I think this is all good timing for the government; with all the black-on-black crime at the moment, i'm thinking they wanted to make a big thing out of the slavery issue cos they think all the dissafected blacks out there are still p*ssed off about the slave trade.

B*llocks. Most of the young blacks (involved in gang crime) dont even know about it cos they dont stay in education long enough.

They will never compensate anyone for it - you can't get a refund on history.

Answer 8

Any excuse to make money, no i do not think compensation should be paid. Who would you give it to anyway. That,s history, much better we do something about todays slaves, children working and used for perverts . Lets help the living and leave history were it is ,in the past.

Answer 9

whilst will the West admit that is persecution, and vilification of the Muslims? whilst will they apologise for killing thousands upon thousands of Muslim men women human beings and youngsters for their very own egocentric benefit? u.s. exchange into built on the slave labour of as a rule Muslim African slaves. u.s. is a stolen united states, whilst will they apologise to the yank indians and supply them their land lower back? Yeah yeah yeah! anybody is unquestionably-known with that Muslims are the worst human beings on earth, yet think of roughly this, why is it that the West is going to Muslim international locations and wreaks havoc, and not any different way around? what proportion circumstances has a Muslim government set up a puppet government in u.s. or the united kingdom? Get actual, the West isn't ideal the two. Take accountability on your individual movements, earlier insisting that others do. by using fact the bible says, 'why do you ***** concerning the speck on your brothers eye, once you have a board on your individual'?

Answer 10

I don't know about you but I am tired of having to apologize for something that occured over two hundred years ago. This was the status quo then, regardless of whether it was good or bad. I suppose two hundred years from now someone will want to be apologizing for our actions. YOU CAN'T CHANGE
HISTORY. Get over it. We have enough wrongs in our own generation to try and put right.

Answer 11

Great, I can trace my ancestors back to the Viking days, will they pay me too?. I can also remember working for £3.20p per 44 hour week. Will I get compensated for that too?. I will get my chrystal ball out tonight and see what my great great grandfather has for offer.