Two Hundred Years

Today is the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade in Britain. A walk of 250 miles, with participants in yokes and chains, commemorated the occasion. Slaves in Britain were not given their freedom until 1833. The slave trade was made illegal in the United States on January 1, 1808, and slavery itself was not abolished here until 1865.

The BBC’s Abolition site in their History section is detailed and fascinating, especially compared with Britney Shaves Her Head on news web sites here. Yes, I realize I’m comparing the history section with entertainment selections. Do any US news sites have good history pages, or even archives?

The Church of England, the country’s official religion, has apologized and taken a lead role in actions to recognize the wrongs of slavery. There seem to be honest attempts to evaluate whether churches were/are Enslaver or Liberator. Church leaders note that slavery continues today, for instance in Bangladeshi child labor clothing sweatshops, and in international sex slave trafficking.

An interesting BBC commentary on the Legacy of Slavery includes reference to an underlying question in our Presidential nomination, as to whether Senator Barack Obama is “black enough”.