It is two hundred years since slavery was abolished and it was, I suppose, predictable that hysterical calls that Great Britain should apologize for slavery have again been raised, only this time with some real 'fever pitch.'
But those who are calling for Great Britain to apologize for their past involvement in slavery are basing their case on 98% emotion (much of it fuelled, inevitably, by liberal and neo-Marxist elements and interests), and only about 2% on an actual knowledge of the history of slavery. This is disappointing, especially where some evangelical Christians have too rapidly become involved, without checking out the facts. Now here are some facts about the history of slavery:
1. Those who attack the British-European record of involvement are only, largely, considering one century (the 17th century): this was the century when thousands of African slaves were taken, mainly, to the Americas. Of course, one cannot excuse it, but this was entirely based on human greed - not on race. The importation of slaves into the United States peaked in the 17th century but was banned in 1808, by which time several hundred thousand had been imported. Sometimes people claim that "millions" of Africans were taken, but history simply does not substantiate such a figure.
2. Slavery is very ancient, and can easily be dated to before 3,000BC; the law code of Hammurabi refers to it, as do the Sumerians; in the Old Testament one may read of the Egyptians taking the Israelites into slavery. Both the Greeks and Romans (especially the Romans), came to heavily specialize in it and it is during the period of the ascendancy of the Romans that slavery probably reached its peak (although the lack of ancient records make it hard to be certain of this), but most Roman historians believe that Rome achieved much of its wealth and power because of the employment of millions - yes, millions - of slaves!
3. Slavery was never based on race but on human greed; very often slaves
would only be fed and given living space, so they provided amazingly cheap
labour.
Now please read the next statement carefully:
If one takes into account the whole history of slavery, from even before 3,000BC onwards, it is certainly
true that more white-skinned Europeans and Asians have been forced into
slavery than black-skinned peoples.
This is just about the opposite of what the picture which the media now tends to portray.
Of course, the numbers and
statistics are no longer available to fully corroborate this, but this assertion is
based on the fact that slavery, in general, has a record of thousands - I
repeat thousands! - of years, whereas the detestable taking of black
African slaves in the European/American involvement, only - comparatively speaking - had a very short
history.
I recently heard a lady say,
"Slavery was evil because it was all about race!"
Quite obviously this lady has never studied the history of slavery - however, if it was truly "all about race" then the white races have most to complain about! But slavery was never about race, it was about human greed and the worst sort of opportunism.
4. But even the Black African/Euro-American slavery experience was often
largely controlled by African 'slavemasters' - African 'slavemasters'
abducted their own peoples by the tens of thousands and made them available
for a profit. This part is nowadays frequently, and perhaps conveniently,
forgotten. The modern western highly liberal-influenced media only seem able to see slavery in terms of the Africa/Americas experience and as a black/white racial matter because they ignore how widespread slavery was even before the era which they focus on, and will not admit how African tribal chiefs willingly made tens of thousands of their own people available for deportation.
The true facts, however, show that slavery never was about race, but about human greed and the willingness to exploit others in order to satisfy that greed.
Every race has had some involvement in it.
UK Apologetics believes slavery to be detestable, but the call that Great Britain should apologize for slavery when the British involvement was mercifully short, is a nonsense. Since the ancient Romans almost certainly hold the world record for taking slaves it would make much more sense to ask the present Italian government to apologize! I speak in jest because that too would be completely ludicrous. The ancient world has now gone as has the more recent detestable African/Americas slavery system and we must move ahead. There is quite sufficient evil in our modern world for us to focus on that rather than digging up past grievances and injustices.
The Christian Hawk
March 27th, 2007.