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LEWISHAM JOINS SLAVERY APOLOGY CALLS
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The Mayor of Lewisham, Steve Bullock, has joined calls for British institutions to apologise to the descendants of slaves for their involvement in the ‘evils’ of the slave trade, at a commemorative service hosted in Lewisham Town Hall last weekend.
Bullock told The Voice that he had a personal responsibility to find a way to “express the sorrow and regret so many of us share.”
He said the service was the right place to express his view. “I believe that British institutions owe an abject apology to all victims of the slave trade, past and present, and this was my own inadequate attempt to play a part in doing that. Britain created the slave trade and it is something we should be deeply ashamed of. It is an opportunity to try and understand how slavery and its legacy is still causing damage today – to put at least some of it right.”
WILBERFORCE
The Mayor also urged that William Wilberforce should be seen in context. “There is a real danger of Wilberforce portrayed as a saintly figure who single-handedly brought an end to slavery. He is of course very attractive to the media – in it’s simplicity a rather patronising view that displays a degree of racism”.
The event organised by Lewisham’s African-Caribbean community transformed the mainstream agenda of ‘celebrating’ the bicentenary to a community agenda to edify and ‘correct’ people on the past and mend the legacies of chattel enslavement.
Dr Joan Addo–Anim, Director of the centre of Caribbean studies at the University of London, said: “Slavery has left an indelible mark on our identity. The barriers facing young people are imparted as a result of slavery and how we have been perceived throughout slavery”.
Dr William (Lez) Henry, director of Nu-Beyond Ltd, told The Voice why the event was important. “How can I stand back and let the likes of Blair, the Queen and all of the rest of those who benefited the most from the brutalisation and dehumanisation of my ancestors, tell me how to grieve or heal?”
Published: 12 April 2007
Issue: 1264
