Information Related to "How One of Today's 'Bad Guys' Ended the Scourge of Slavery"
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There is no doubt about it-the slave trade was abhorrent. Millions of people were transported across the Atlantic in the most horrific of conditions, taken against their will and sold like cattle. Indeed, cattle were treated better than the victims of this despicable trade.
March 25 was the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade throughout the British Empire-marked throughout the month with commemorative events. One such event was held in Elmina Castle, Ghana, a castle built by the Portuguese in the late 15th century and used for the holding of slaves before transit to the New World.
The following day a service of thanksgiving was held in London, attended by Queen Elizabeth and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The service was interrupted at one point by a man of African descent demanding the British monarch apologize for slavery.
Today it's popular to bash the West, and the major English-speaking nations in particular, and to blame them for many of the world's problems. In line with this, demands for an apology for slavery and reparations have been increasing in recent years.
Such demands overlook a crucial point.
Before the British parliamentary vote to abolish the slave trade, slavery was a fairly universal practice, as it had been throughout history. What Great Britain did, at a time when the slave trade was highly lucrative for all participants, was a totally radical, progressive and bold step. We can be thankful for the foresight shown by men like William Wilberforce, the leader of the antislavery movement.
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