Apologising for the slave trade

[Pennies]

Today marks the 200th anniversary of the slave trade and there have been calls recently for there to be a formal apology from Tony Blair and / or the Queen.

Will it make any difference?

My personal opinion is that you can't apologise for someone else's actions - it would be a bit like me apologising for Tony Blair's sanctioning of the war in Iraq (and I have never voted for him so I haven't even approvied those actions vicariously IYSWIM). It would be an empty apology, wouldn't it?

I can't see that it would ever change anything, or am I missing something.

I agree the best form of compensation is to ensure that we build a society where the descendents of slaves do not still live with the disadvantages, economic, social and psychological, that comes from having had enslaved ancestors.

How we do that, is where the really big argument lies, I suppose.

agree with you caligula

I once heard an absolutely fascinating programme on R4 - made my black producers - about why the US had a strong black middle class and the UK didn't. One of the conclusions was that the former slaves in the US had become more middle class (ie professional, more affluent and influential) because a/ they were often educated more than poor whites and b/when they were liberated they were often given property, which again as an advantage over poor whites. It was a very interesting programme.

I think what Aloha says would also be true of many immigrants in the USA or Canada. Go to a place like California, it's full of relatively newly arrived immigrants who have a very high standard of living. They work hard and then buy property for peanuts compared to what we pay over here in the UK. Here even us relatively educated whites are squeezed out of the best properties in the best areas where our kids can go to the best schools. You have to move house to get your child into a decent state school in places like London. Imagine how hard it is if you are from an ethnic minority group or newly arrived. Bloody up hill all the way.

Mm, agree. ALso, its really only my generation that is wdely attending Uni in any numbers if not from a relatively well off background- so the chances haven't had a chance to trickle through to many, not just black people. Certainly, very few people from my comp went on to study, and none (bar me as an adult) from my council estate primary. That sdoes seem to be rectifying now (although apaprently there is a camp[aign underway to stop amture students going to Uni as it 'demeans' the genuinely academic people who have to eduate themselves with inferior types. Okaaaaay. So how all the amture students get better grades? Oh thats right, the kids are too busy in the pub to submit theior essays)

A campaign to stop mature students ? Bloody hell, I would much rather have sat in a class with mature students than some of the fools in their early 20's when I was in my early 20's !

I did all my legal qualifications part time in the evenings while I was working full-time in my early 30's. The BEST students in my class were the mature ones !!

tell me about it! I'm doing alright with the boys, my friend is getting B's with 5 kids (single mum), 2 with SN.

Only 2 of the kids are performing better than us- one buys her essays off her sister who graduated first 3 years ago and they both have a policy of removing all the books from the library before any assignment (rather rubbish library in our section unfortunately) because, apaparently, they need the grades better than us.

Okaaaaaaaaaaay

LOL

Anyway must lighten up- last day of lexctures today, just work experience 9) and exams.

oh peachy good luck - I hate book grabbers - lol !!

where and what are you studying ? I gather it is a masters as you are doing a thesis ?

I must say I really, really fancy going back to college. I miss my student days like mad

No LOL_ dissertation, not thesis. BA in World Religion and Philosophy at newport- not the most glam Uni I was offered, but the best to raise kids nearby.
2nd year so almost there- then a PGCE and maybe a MA when I can afford it (probably in Buddhism).

Scary huh?

Have skimmed the thread and agree with expat.

Also, if we have to apologise for the slave trade, do we have to start apologising for all the other less than brilliant things our nation has done throughout it's long history?
The Crusades, various wars with European countries, the Irish potato famine?
Or should English people apologise to the Welsh and Scottish for defeating them in the past, or come to think of it should the Danes be apologising to the English and Scottish for the Viking invasion...?

WTF?

Is utterly ridiculous and pointless and made me very cross when I heard it on the news which is unusual for me as am normally fairly laid back.

The Government's energy should be put into stopping exploitation (Fair Trade for 3rd World, ensuring no child labour in Far East sweatshops etc) that is goind on now not on something historical that we can't do anything about.

Right, rant over, feel better now...

the apologising could go on and on forever

peachy - I think you will find that DC will tell you are are doing a really useless arts degree like the rest of us that will give you little "logic and reason" - lol - I do love his stereotypes !

Ah well, I did a combined science last year (well, Psychology- but with stats )

Logic and reason I don't need (but hey I got a B in ethics), to teach.

bet DC'll love that

Loving arty farty stuff and being "scientifically" logical aren't mutually exclusive - which is what make me laugh !

Oh I know, but Dc is what he is

awkward and loving of attention

lol !