Slavery and Colonialism Are Everyone’s History

[GodessOfThunder]

I was on a thread recently where posters were complaining of slavery and colonialism being “shoehorned” into exhibitions, and were strongly “pushing back” against it being given prominence as a topic in museums and at historic sites. Indeed, transatlantic slavery and colonialism often seem to be regarded as niche historical subjects of interest more to people of colour, and involving only a small number of rich white slave owners and colonial officials.

This perception however, does not reflect reality. Transatlantic slavery effected not only millions of Africans, but pretty much everyone in Britain too. Similarly, colonialism effected not only millions of subjects in the British Empire, but everyone “at home” also. The economy these projects fuelled changed what ordinary people ate and drank and what they wore. They changed how British people thought about non-European people in ways that continue to shape their mindset and create injustice today. Slavery and colonialism helped fund the Industrial Revolution and the jobs people in Britain performed, and much more too.

I’m not suggesting anyone today should feel guilty for these activities. But, these subjects are still all too often not regarded as part of all of our histories. This means attempts to give them proper prominence are met with resistance. If we are to understand British history at a public level properly there is still a great deal of work to do.

@Newusername1273 I’m genuinely curious, which countries are you referring to?

Excellent post! Spot on.

@DownNative if you do start a thread, please tag me. It's v interesting!

My mother ‘lived it’ as a young Irish woman of 16 in London in the late 1950s.
If she’d seen such ignorance in the 1980s she’d have ripped the perpetrator a new one.

In the country I live in, a combination of factors are leading to ever louder voices on both sides (descendants of the colonised and of the colonisers) as one seeks to maintain the status quo and ideally revert to the good ole days of supremacy and the other seeks reparations and a level playing field. Contention often descends into violence and deeper entrenchment on both sides. Change comes in fits and starts, and isn't linear. Progress isn't always progress. I think this is a pattern that repeats and has repeated wherever there has been colonisation (and slavery - one cannot exist without the other).

I've begun to wonder whether we should look at this from a different perspective, that of who the colonisers tend to be and why they tend to colonise. Across the millenia and across the board, at its core slavery and colonisation is the exploitation of the many weak in order to satisfy the greed of a few, who are mostly men in search of power. It's a specific psychology that not only wants more but NEEDS more. To BE the subjogator and amasser of the greatest wealth is often what gives the coloniser and the slave owner their identity. It fulfils their need for supremacy.

Any type of despot - a dictator, a billionaire owner of an online shopping forum paying its workers less than a living wage, a human trafficker, a slave trader, a nation in search of global supremacy by every available means - and those who admire them and support them in their quest for despotic supremacy, has a specific type of humanity. They have always existed and, imo, for as long as there is humanity they will always exist. To understand slavery, colonialism, empire, is to understand human behaviour. You can't have one without the other.

What a lot of people don't realise is that a lot of the african tribesmen who became slaves were rounded up and sold by their own people to the Europeans... and was infact going on for centuries prior to "the white man" even setting foot on the continent. Saying slavery is solely the fault of the British Empire and Colonialism is just pure ignorance.

How about putting a reallity check into this thread. In Secondary School History was/is taught as a compulsory subject for around two years. It then becomes a choice subject for the student. In those first two years there is obviously a lot of histoy to cover.

There is no way the full nuances of any part of history can be explored fully, nor their interactions with other parts.

Sadly I think the transatlantic slavery issue is being used and promoted presently by people with their own agenda. Especially when the subject of reparations often crop up in the subject.

I personally feel that 200 years after an event, nobody can claim to be persecuted by it. Eight Generations have passed with the opportunity to improve the family history. At some point the reason for where a person is has to become their own problem.

I encourage you to read the diaries of Thomas Thistlewood

I just looked up the Wikipedia entry for that monster, who apparently was typical of his caste. I haven't the stomach for reading his diaries.

Throughout history and across different cultures there have been different types of slavery, of which the most brutal was chattel slavery, the type implemented in the Americas.

Slavery may be 200 years on, but the de-colonising/end of empire is much more recent and well within living memory. The OP was about both.

Well actually eight generations away. The example you give is like saying, my Great Great Great Great Granny spoke to the Great Great Grandson who's Dad went up chimneys as a boy.

Who is saying slavery is solely the fault of the British Empire and colonialism?

But the consequences are still felt in a very real way. NI is current affairs. Whether it's as a result of colonisation, idk. But, whatever it was, the aftereffects (sp!?! ffs) are there.

Your correct Northern Ireland is current. In recent years progress has obviously been made to find peace between both sides. As has previously been said, we have to be very careful not to create a new generation of hatred by digging up the sins of the past. The background of it all is something for those in Ireland to teach their young. But to do it in such a way as that neither 'side' was beyond reproach.

Also appreciate that being a British Dependent Territory or Colony also comes with the protections the UK can offer. Recent examples would be the Falklands or Spains behaviour towards Gibraltar.

@CallumDansTransitVan true but ROI citizens would have decent enough protections too. I'm veering into waffly territory again now (soz!). But, indulge me, it's my birthday ;)

Has anyone said that though on this thread?

I explicitly acknowledged the role of Africans few pages ago.

This point needs to be part of any account of slavery, but it’s important to also understand that Europeans incentivised and expanded the existing trade. They also introduced a greater degree of brutality and ownership over enslaved people.

Well happy birthday from Scotland. A place so rough the only thing to colonise us was midges! 😂

We've been colonised by midges too, i'm destroyed with the fookers altogether!

Has anyone figured out what point this thread is trying to make. It’s just a rambling lecture.

It's a discussion. And a rare type that hasn't descended into people abusing each other despite sensitive subject matter. These discussions are valuable. And, don't like it, don't read it. Nobody is forcing you to.

When I was in school East Belfast, we WERE taught about Irish history. More specifically, the Famine, 1880s emergence Unionism & Nationalism, 1912 Ulster Covenant, 1916 Easter Rising, Government of Ireland Act 1920 and partition.

Definitely weren't taught about Scottish or English Monarchs in secondary school in my time.

We learnt about Northern Ireland's role in WW2, e.g. training base for Normandy landings, important for strategic reasons during Battle of The Atlantic.

So, I'm afraid what you said doesn't gel with what my generation was learning in history classes.

And I'm far from old!

It was YOU who was using the Troubles as an example of colonialism well before I entered the discussion.

I saw your post and responded. Had you not brought the Troubles into a discussion on colonialism, I wouldn't even mentioned it.

But you brought it in as did some others when it wasn't a colonial based conflict. So it makes no sense to use it. Simple as that.

I gather from your comment that you don’t think institutional racism exists. Could you explain then how black people have caused themselves to have more negative outcomes in health, education and employment?

So for example when you look at published ethnicity pay gaps they almost always show that there is an ethnicity wage gap even when you control individual characteristics (eg occupation & education) between black and white workers. What do you think black people have done to cause that?

Or what have black women done to cause ourselves to be 4 times more likely to die when giving birth?

When going into university having previously attained similar grades why are black students performing worse than their peers? Despite the fact that some groups are more likely to go to university.

Yes, good point about secondary schools only having a short period of time with which to teach history.

Does anyone want history to be compulsory throughout secondary education? All 5 years?

The subject of the British Empire can be taught in schools, but can it be dealt with quite comprehensively?

I'm not too sure on that, especially as you cannot explain how the British Empire began without a comparative study of other European Empires. After, they didn't really develop fully independent of each other.

For the first I think 150 years of the Atlantic Slave Trade, Portugal dominated it. Other European States saw how wealthy Portugal was becoming and developed their own empires. If I remember correctly, Portugal was also the first European power to trade with Japan who were very isolationist in the 1600s.

Whilst empires of old such as all the European ones and even Asian empires are a thing of the past in the sense of forced expansion of territory, the 21st Century equivalent is globalisation of business. The United States is, arguably, a kind of empire today. In a sense, empire hasn't gone away. Its simply involved.

Whether we like it or not, there is a strong correlation between successful economies and military might. China is a good example of this plus it operates similarly to the USA in terms of using business to spread its influence, e.g. Africa. It is poised to become the new super power. Other examples in the past include British, Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch empires.

HRTFT - but not all British are of pure British ethnicity. Half my family came from an ex-colony of the British Empire, the other half were Welsh with a bit of French. But I am British. I'm in favour of Colonial history and Slavery being openly taught and discussed, but I think it's simplistic to say it's British people's history. There must be many British people of mixed ethnicity who find that a little muddled and mildly offensive.

@DownNative Personally I think 1 or 2 topics a key stage of colonial history alongside other British history is doable. It doesn’t necessarily all have to be doom and gloom. The purpose would not be to make anyone feel bad but foster empathy and get rid of some of these pervasive stereotypes.

Even introducing positive poc achievements in other lessons would be great. Maybe some non-European literature, art or music again alongside British works. Anything at all that doesn’t leave children with the impression that all poc are stupid, lazy and incapable.