Slavery: still saying sorry?

Question

i find it strange that countries are being lobbied to apologise for the slave trade which our forefathers so actively participated. Admittedly the whole notion of slave labour is abhorrent but asking world leaders to apologise 100 years or so after it was presumably abolished is like asking germans to say sorry for Hitler. Let's instead put our energies into stopping human trafficing NOW! and help end the plight of child labour and poverty

Answer 1

The people that are lobbying for an apology are just shameless attention-seekers and greedy money-grabbers trying to get reparations. They themselves are racist against white people and they are using slavery as an excuse to get all their prejudices out.

Why don't we ban the Music Of Black Origin (MOBO) Awards? There's an award ceremony that excludes white people! That's racism that, unlike slavery, is happening now and that we can do something about.

Answer 2

The ancestors and countires of where the traded slaves came from ought to be doing some apologizing. Many of them were willing traded and sold by their own people into slavery.
Onle about 3% of the American public owned slaves, hence the very wealthy. Not to say that makes it any better, but, America was the leader in abolishing the slave trade and setting examples of liberty for the rest of the world.
Let's all just be Americans and work for the same goals. The betterment of our communities and nation. We now have bigger fish to fry and much more serius issues at hand.

Answer 3

I did think exactly the same as you- no one is alive today that had anything to do with it, so why on earth should be apologise?

But my boyfriend explained to me that the reason they are still asking for an apology is because we, as a nation, benefitted a lot financially from the slave trade- our nation's wealth is in part down to that. We are still reaping the benefits of the slave trade, every single one of us, and they are still in poverty.

This doesn't mean we are personally responsible anymore, but our nation hasn't ever properly made it right. This is why they want an apology.

I'm not sure really where I stand, I don't know enough about this to form a proper opinion, but it did make me think.

Answer 4

I think that current generations have been conditioned to be aware of the mistakes of the past so as not to repeat them. I refuse to say sorry for being a white male. My Grandfather was first generation American, but his parents were German (not Nazi's either). Not every white person was involved in slavery. And the people that are decendents of the people that were involved are most likely not involved. Just like the ones seeking apologies were not the actual slaves. They want credit for hardships their forefathers endured. Which in my opinion is absurd and selfish. Every person makes his own way.

Answer 5

Good point! Slavery was abolished by brave souls who fought to end it as it currently existed, and not by people demanding apologies for the many instances where slavery existed but existed no longer.
I never owned a slave...my people came here in 1920, 55 years AFTER it was abolished in the US and they came from a country that had abolished it 1000 years before the US did..

Answer 6

Very true! The present generation in this country (USA) has no legitimate slaves or slaveholders. The previous generations never asked my opinion on slavery, or they would have known that I and most of the people I know are against it. We are not responsible for their laziness in not traveling into the future and taking a poll to find out how we feel about the issue.

Answer 7

I personally am tired of people wanting me to apologize for something that happened before I was thought of,my father,or grandfather was thought of.Get over it people.I am part Indian and I do not expect an apology from the people of today for what people did to the Indians all those years ago.Heck,some of the people of today could be the African Americans that want peoples apologies,probably have houses sitting on my forefathers land!!!

Answer 8

We're all too caught up in political correctness. People feel something is owed to them - even if it's nothing more than an apology for something they never experienced. I think you're right - we should instead remember the mistakes of the past and focus on fixing the problems of the now.

Answer 9

I agree. The slave trade was appalling but we are not responsible for what our ancestors did. I do not expect North African countries to apologise for raiding our coasts in medieval times to carry off white people to be slaves in Arab countries.

Answer 10

This sorry business after 130 years + is lunacy. What are we trying to prove? Lets concentrate on todays problems.

Somethings are better forgot, what's the point of highlighting them now. The Vikings took slaves from the British islands for centuries and sold them in Cordoba and North Africa, whose going to be asking for an apology for that?

What fool suggested this anyhow?