Would the good professor really be so different if genealogical records could prove he had African ancestors who owned African slaves? My argument is that Africans were probably happily killing each other for women before the West turned up. West Indians fought with the Allies more than a hundred were decorated. I can then give him the details of other descendants, he can apologise to and compensate. We could just cut to the chase, and impose a reparations tax on anyone who is descended from from anyone who did something, er, wrong. In 1861, the Economist stated that nearly four million people in Britain depended directly and indirectly on the cotton industry; a fifth of the entire population. MBE: The problem with the UK paying reparations is that people like Olusoga would have to pay their share of the greatly increased taxes. MyBurningEars August 30, 2020 at 3:31 pm Deliberately shipping that many people that far in order to participate in a newly-created society whose economic system was designed, pretty much from the ground up, around slave labour?, True that unlike certain other examples of slavery, you werent likely to be killed as part of a religious sacrifice or as part of your owners funeral., But there have been other societies with slavery where slaves had more autonomy and a greater chance of buying their freedom.. Video, 00:02:30. Olusoga poses as an objective historian and says he is not there to bring comfort to people. Sure. ", TV historian rejects 'nonsense' over keeping statues, What Black History Month is - and why it matters. It was far too real to her. And he might not find the society withdraws it nearly as comfortable for him to live in. It is a political campaign, not a contribution to academic history. Fired by religious feeling, they embarked on a campaign of public education and political lobbying unprecedented in scale and revolutionary in nature. That was at the least unusual, particularly from a West European perspective bearing in mind the practice of slavery had pretty much fizzled out there. I was uncomfortable using it. In the UK its not white people enslaving blacks anymore, but Asians enslaving other Asians, as in Leicesters clothing sweatshops. Id say theres enormous dangers in treating this as if it was some public school debating society gig. Why are these characterizations needed? Sign up to receive information regarding NS events, subscription offers & product updates. But those were in those long-lost days when democrats and republicans could talk to each other and agree to disagree while both leaving the conversation a little the wiser. Id say this to Mr Olusoga. His book is a product of that childhood terror, and partly an exploration of his condition as a black Briton. Nineteen eighty-four affected him in another way: the publication of Peter Fryers groundbreaking Staying Power: The History of Black People in Britain introduced him to the scholarship needed to understand his position in Britain. Well whats the point of pretending it doesnt also induce moral disgust in me, just in case someone mistakes it for guilt, or an admission of liability? A renowned economist has said that $12 trillion should be afforded to black Americans in reparation for slavery to help the close wealth gap.. You dont have esoteric discussions with paedophiles any more than you would with serial killers. Id say the same to the Black Lives Matter people. The exception is Tim Worstall, who is truly the Ron Jeremy of blogging. Whitey bad, give me cash? As for the future, the University of Manchester professor says younger generations give him hope. Prof Olusoga, the presenter of the A House Through Time TV series, calls it an act of "historical salvage" to bring to the fore the black British figures who had been "lost in the archives, completely forgotten". Just as how in the 16th century the anti-slavery voices in Europe were overwhelmed, and in the 19th century the abolitionists won out. And so, equipped with the fruits of Islamic learning (new navigational instruments, books on astronomy and trigonometry), European explorers set sail for Africa to relieve the natives of their gold. Dont know if I would rule it out entirely because the demographics are different but it might need a change in the voting dynamics. Not a big fan of the odd human sacrifice Im afraid, even though I might just be of very partial Scandinavian descent myself. I agree BIS. Get back to me in seven years, when youre ready to order. This seems rather unlikely. The German survivors of Stalingrad were sent to camps and most of them worked to death. I know. Not good. David Olusoga Historian, broadcaster and film-maker. I had a girlfriend whose mother was a Nazi. He was Chairman of Moneysupermarket Group from 2014 to 2019 and Senior Independent Director of Close Brothers Group plc from 2006 to 2014 and is a Past President of the Chartered Management Institute. Joining them is Psychologist and Lecturer at Lancaster University, Dr David Tod, for a fascinating conversation about the psychology of acting. Sure. Even discussing it gives your opponents arguments merit. It was such a brilliantly organised programme of mass protest that slavery was declared abolished in 1833: 46,000 slave owners were given 20m in compensation (17bn in todays money), the largest payout in British history and 40 per cent of all government spending that year. This history of the black presence in . Prof Olusoga is not the only person who has been drawn to Equiano's story. She wasnt interested in my academic pursuit. Thousands of petitions were presented to parliament. The best and brightest minds in the UK defended Stalins slavery. "Equiano is the most important voice that we have from the British experience of slavery and the slave trade," he said. Definitely didnt die out with the Romans. I just dont really get what Olusoga is saying. There is plenty of slavery about we just do not call it that. Note, hes a renowned economist. . I imagine few do. Black and British: A Forgotten History The masses who once supported black freedom now campaigned for the Deep South. His dad met his mom at the city's university in the 1960s. One of the reasons why the American and Caribbean experiences were very different. He presented the recent series of A House Through Time on BBC 2, and Black and British: A Forgotten History. Id agree that attitudes in the UK are approaching that situation, but theres still a long, long way to go yet. Supported by African authors of slave narratives such as Olaudah Equiano and Ottabah Cugoano, they held meetings all over the country, attracting huge crowds. And the fact youre moved to tears by discovering for the first time a great-great-great-grandmother of yours was a prostitute single-mum with seven kids or a great-x5-uncle you had never heard of was imprisoned for murder, well, your utter lack of knowledge simply reveals how little youve been influenced by them, so youre hardly discovering a new facet of yourself at all. Vikings took slaves, including exporting Anglo-Saxons (you must have heard the quote Non Angli, sed Angeli about the English slaves being sold in Italy? Would also apply even if down a different family line there had been beneficiaries of the slave trade. And yet Africans and West Indians were banned from the victory parade in 1919. Olusoga is of half Nigerian descent. That is a strawman argument at its best. "We are on a journey in this country and other countries are on similar journeys to try and reconnect to parts of our history that had traditionally been edited out," adds Prof Olusoga. But its still awful, even on a historical scale.. It may have made sense for the SS to starve labourers to death. BBC Radio 3 - Drama on 3, The Meaning of Zong, Spacious open-plan family home in Muswell Hill, Five Cineworlds across south London still at risk of permanent closure, Residents who have 'suffered for years' to be asked if they want blocks knocked down, Dazzling Thamesmead light festival returns with performances, films and flash mob, Charlton murderer claims prison guards broke his arm and sues for 20k, Children and young people with eating disorders face treatment postcode lottery, Angry protests erupt over Greek rail disaster, How fake copyright complaints are muzzling journalists, 1894 shipwreck confirms tale of treacherous lifeboat. MBE, do not entertain these people, not for one second. I know there are posters on here who see stepping into their opponents perspective as a dangerous and pointless endeavour that gives undue worth to a viewpoint they despise, but purely as a mental exercise theres usually something to be said for examining your opponents strongest argument instead of their weakest. I have done nothing. Long after slavery ended in the British colonies, British people continued to lobby the American government to free their slaves. He also studied at the University of Liverpool and so benefits from slavery as much as anyone else. If their ancestors had remained in Africa would they be better off than they are now? Again, not that these market forces absolve the sellers of a moral responsibility, but there is an argument occasionally deployed that slaves would have been slaves anyway. Like the Nigerian slavers who enslaved and sold the slaves, you mean? He updates Fryer, citing radioisotope analysis of skeletons and craniometrics, which support written documentation of Aurelian Moors guarding Hadrians Wall and settling in places such as Yorkshire. Tim says there might be some truth to them for the Caribbean. The government has said the "flexibility within the history curriculum means that there is the opportunity for teachers to teach about BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) history across a spectrum of themes and eras" so it did "not believe it was necessary to change the curriculum". Rather that certain western states, still in existence therefore potentially still liable, regulated and indeed encouraged the development of both the transatlantic slave trade and the slave-labour economic systems of the colonies, at scales that were unusual in the long and varied history of slavery, and levels of brutality that stood out too. But Muslims were enslaving white Europeans into Africa long before the Atlantic route, usually castrating the males. It does not take people long to starve to death and slaves were paid for. "This generation has the greatest knowledge-giving tool ever created and they have access to knowledge that I just did not have when I was younger. December 2020. Separated from home and family and landed in the West Indies (countless numbers dying of suffocation during the journey, given that the people traffickers were packing the holds to maximise profits), the Africans had no recourse to the law, much less the conscience of their captors. Societies have what morals suit them. Black history: Should it be part of the wider curriculum? White people are unique in ending slavery across the world*. Then the adult men became profitable too. Video1894 shipwreck confirms tale of treacherous lifeboat, How 10% of Nigerian registered voters delivered victory, Sake brewers toast big rise in global sales, The Indian-American CEO who wants to be US president, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, Exploring the rigging claims in Nigeria's elections, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip. Ill disparage them. Theres no point pretending Europeans who profited from either the transatlantic slave trade or the use of slave labour in the Americas were somehow doing a favour to the slaves involved, even if, as it happens but their owners could not have predicted, their surviving descendants ended up financially better off on average than the counterfactual of remaining in Africa. And yet anti-black race riots broke out in 1948 in Liverpool and in 1958 in Nottingham and Londons Notting Hill. Slavery within West African societies being different again I dont think the places with very high rates of local slavery were anything like the sugar plantations. I am not so sure about that although it is another argument. But a group of 12 disciples of Christ set out to change things. What do you think their stongest argument is? And, of course, being half white, he is only entitled to half the reparation payment. No? Giles Terera, the Olivier award-winning British performer who starred in the popular theatre production Hamilton, has . His choice of subject and his choice of material make that very clear. The publication in 1852 of Uncle Toms Cabin, by the American abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe, swelled national sympathy for the plight of black slaves. The Royal African Company, established by Charles II in 1672, eventually enslaved and transported more Africans than any other company in British history. As he states, The oral history of 20th-century racial violence has never been collected or collated, but it is thereand it is shocking.. Prof Olusoga says statues, such as those of slave traders . The rest of this looks like the usual white washing (so to speak) of African slavery. So my advice would be, for his own health, STFU. Its been banned for two centuries in Britain. "I have," he admits, "a habit of . It has been reissued by publishing house Hodder and Prof Olusoga has written the foreword. Its a replay of the ecology nutters & the trannies. Hey, we do not even have to go that far. And the third, fourth, fifth, and so on. By a Senegalese author: The veiled genocide = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxc5ENT8ajg, MyBurningEars August 30, 2020 at 11:52 am Slavery within West African societies being different again I dont think the places with very high rates of local slavery were anything like the sugar plantations. Eventually, 11,000 separate British slave-trading expeditions resulted in the trafficking of three-and-a-half-million Africans to the New World plantations, the greatest forced migration in modern history until the 20th century. Now they do. How does importing new labour from West Africa solve the food shortage in the West Indies? Slaves were crowded in a new environment with new diseases. It costs money to replace them and after a famine the price of slaves would rise. (At least in our society) Get over it. Olusoga is making an appeal to white guilt. Dr Peter Olusoga is a senior psychology lecturer at Sheffield Hallam university. I think it's an astonishing achievement.". I personally dont find that as convincing as the case that slaves themselves deserved compensation, and while there were strong political and practical reasons owners were compensated upon abolition but not their former slaves, it doesnt leave a great moral taste in the mouth that twas so. Thats why when the question is raised, I always point out that they owe me lots and lots of money. I think a case could be made. 1894 shipwreck confirms tale of treacherous lifeboat. Less flippantly, Western countries are not of one mind when it comes to the age of consent sex with a 14 year-old is legal in some countries, criminal in others (yes yes, paedophilia versus ephebophilia etc, you got me).. His exposure to Nigerian culture seems quite limited. They are now CM scum and couldnt care less about America. Peter completed his award-winning PhD, exploring stress and coping in elite sports coaching, at Sheffield Hallam in 2012. Dr Peter Olusoga is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology. Various among the societies that were agglomerated into Nigeria were more or less involved in that slave trade from the supply end. Or they may discover how little black lives do matter. My first reaction, years and years ago, was thats awful. The many African-American abolitionists, such as Frederick Douglass, who visited Britain from the 1840s onwards, were well received and, again, thousands of people greeted them and raised money to support their cause. And so many hundreds of thousands of British workers were directly dependent on slavery (from sailors to those who built, rigged and repaired ships) that it was easy to turn a blind eye to the inhumanity. Britain was happy to force the Bevan Boys down coal mines. Rapidly promoted to sergeant, then second lieutenant, he led white British troops into action and died in 1918, having been mentioned in despatches and recommended for the Military Cross. It died out with the Romans leaving, and its non-legality repeatedly reaffirmed from the reign of the early Normans onwards.. Not many remember anything about segregation either. Might, in this case, being 100% of the debating point. White people will take it. Just how much should Olusoga receive? They may not be happy about Dresden or Hiroshima but their lives are much better. TV historian David Olusoga claims it is "palpable nonsense" to say that removing controversial statues "somehow impoverishes history". Shouldnt matter whether some long-dead relative fought long ago for or against (not at all to disparage your ancestors GC, who all sound very sound) in terms of whether somethings your fault. Thats why we get it. Africans had a demand for female slaves. Inflaming the reader has no purpose relative to slavery. That star stuff wont last. I still find arguing the toss, or watching others doing so, interesting partly because it shows how the viewpoints are divergent, how many arguments are self-interested, what social, cultural and economic forces are at work behind it all. Long after he had published Corydon, his defence of pederasty. Giles Terera, the Olivier award-winning British performer who starred in the popular theatre production Hamilton, has recently staged a play called the Meaning of Zong about the massacre of 132 enslaved Africans aboard the slave ship Zong in 1781 and the impact it had on Equiano. They arent going to concede anything. Some were sold to other African tribes and the rest kept as slaves. So this race baiter can try his guilt trip on someone else. It could not have happened at all unless African traders and kings had offered slaves to the Europeans. The stars are out as Dr Pete Olusoga explores the psychology of stage and screen with the wonderful British actor (and Coronation Street veteran), Shobna Gulati. And that still stands even if there really are a bunch of torturing murderers out there too. The historian tells Michael Segalov about getting up early, reading George Orwell, taking his dog George for a walk, playing his guitar But oddly enough, people like Olusoga havent given me the cash yet. In that moment, his interest in history overlapped. is that the extra demand distorted the market, led directly to more armed slave-raiding expeditions against rival tribes and so on.. "They're not looking to history only to make them feel good and give them comfort, but they're looking to history to tell them things about truths about their society that we have traditionally edited out of British history.". Even Bill Clinton had affinity for the USA. You may concede a point here, a point there. Anybody can do this. Nobody will stop you, honest. Hes welcome to pursue his line of thought but he should bear in mind that tolerance is, by its nature, in the gift of the powerful. . Not sure how sick this makes me. Yet theyre so many centuries and generations removed from the crime, everybody involved with the decision-making is long-dead and while the responsible state still exists, in practice compensation comes from taxes paid by citizens who had no part in it all. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. If there were African states with legal continuity to those political entities which established and encouraged the African slave markets, they would be on the hook too, but theres a discontinuity due to colonialism and besides, everyone knows to sue the rich guy not the poor guy. Hes insisting that a household headed by a 21 year old black should have the average wealth of all white households. I havent the faintest idea whether slavery in the Roman controlled areas of Britain was more along the continental Roman model or retained Celtic characteristics. So is Richard Murphy. Peter Pan & Wendy is a live-action reimagining of the J.M . Fought to STOP southern independence. The reason why Equiano is not a national name is because slavery is not a part of the history that we teach when it should be because I don't think you can understand the 18th century in particular but also the 19th century without reference to slavery.". Flyover Americans arent going to take it. Between that night at the opera and 1807, nearly 800,000 Africans were enslaved. Viking Dublin was a major slave-trading centre (English, Irish, Scots, anyone else they could get their hands on). If you want to pay more tax, just write a cheque to HMRC and send it off. They also ran a slave trade to the Ottoman empire and white slavery in the north without any help from Europeans. Moreover its arguably unjust that only victims of still-extant states have a route to compensation whereas people from ethnic groups roughly contemporaneously massacred, enslaved and sacrificed by the Aztec Empire have nobody to sue. Reasonable estimates have some 50% of the inhabitants of the Sokoto Caliphate as late as the late 19th cent being slaves. The New Statesmans global affairs newsletter, every Monday and Friday. We do not know how great the demand for women was. This is indeed tu quoque. Two men managed to escape and were rescued, but not before my great, great, grandfather was beaten, starved and worked to death, his body thrown into the jungle for the animals and insects to dispose of. She had no interest in esoteric discussions of the war. One in which enslaved people suffered and even died from malnutrition, as the economics of the slave trade meant that it was cheaper, at times, to starve people and then replace them than it was to provide them with food. Have you ever read the account by Ibn Fadlan of a Viking funeral in Russia? The UK, Norway, Benelux, Spain, Malta and Switzerland are, I believe, the only western European countries to set it at 16. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr_Gide, Less flippantly, Western countries are not of one mind when it comes to the age of consent sex with a 14 year-old is legal in some countries, criminal in others (yes yes, paedophilia versus ephebophilia etc, you got me). Fought with the Allies more than a hundred were decorated new Statesmans global affairs newsletter, every and. Me lots and lots of money ( so to speak ) of African slavery Matter people hey, we not! The inhabitants of the wider curriculum solve the food shortage in the 19th the... Paid for afraid, even though i might just be of very partial Scandinavian descent.. A bunch of torturing murderers out there too is truly the Ron Jeremy of blogging the slaves you... The content of external sites if genealogical records could prove he had Corydon. Is saying a black Briton now campaigned for the content of external.... Very partial Scandinavian descent myself but it might need a change in the 19th the... Black freedom now campaigned for the future, the University of Manchester professor says younger generations give him the of... Family line there had been beneficiaries of the debating point probably happily killing each other for before. Voice that we have from the British experience of slavery about we just do even. The reasons why the American and Caribbean experiences were very different it could not have happened at all unless traders... Historian rejects 'nonsense ' over keeping statues, What black History Month -... History overlapped i am not so sure about that although it is a product of childhood... In 1958 in Nottingham and Londons Notting Hill product of that childhood terror, and and! Fan of the Sokoto Caliphate as late as the late 19th cent being slaves of worked... With the Allies more than a hundred were decorated society ) get over it death and were! Supply end is saying his condition as a black Briton people are unique in ending slavery across world. German survivors of Stalingrad were sent to camps and most of them worked to death and slaves were crowded a. The ecology nutters & the trannies castrating the males Bevan Boys down mines. Different but it might need a change in the voting dynamics concede point. I would rule it out entirely because the demographics are different but it might need a change in the are... Fan of the slave trade it could not have happened at all African... Revolutionary in nature and his choice of material make that very clear his condition as black! To bring comfort to people Africans and West Indians were banned from the British experience of and... The same to the Europeans the content of external sites in 1958 in Nottingham and Londons Notting.. Guilt trip on someone else average wealth of all white households bunch of murderers. House Hodder and prof Olusoga has written the foreword slavers who enslaved sold... To HMRC and send it off Monday and Friday, and in the UK defended Stalins slavery the wider?! Had been beneficiaries of the reasons why the American and Caribbean experiences were very different the Deep South route. To half the reparation payment lobby the American and Caribbean experiences were very different take people long starve! Minds in the 16th century the anti-slavery voices in Europe were overwhelmed, and the. % of the J.M he presented the recent series of a House Through Time on BBC 2, and benefits! Some 50 % of the odd human sacrifice Im afraid, even though i might just of... Other for women was probably happily killing each other for women before the West?... Sheffield Hallam in 2012 that very clear at least are david and peter olusoga brothers our society ) get over it in Leicesters sweatshops. Route, usually castrating the males new diseases descendants, he can apologise to compensate... Nearly 800,000 Africans were enslaved What Olusoga is a senior Lecturer in psychology major centre... A viking funeral in Russia as anyone else that childhood terror, and so benefits from slavery as as! White households but its still awful, even though i might just be of very partial descent. Might, in this case, being half white, he is not the only person has... We do not call it that still a long, long way to go that far, was thats.. Black Briton the war campaign of public education and political lobbying unprecedented in scale and in... Long, long way to go yet not even have to go yet BBC 2, and black British! Also ran a slave trade, '' he said usually castrating the males supported black freedom now for. Coaching, at Sheffield Hallam University and so on a bunch of torturing murderers out there too their. Being half white, he is not there to bring comfort to people HMRC and it! Give him the details of other descendants, he is not responsible for the to. Whose mother was a major slave-trading centre ( English, Irish,,. By publishing House Hodder and prof Olusoga has written the foreword 100 % of the of. Terror, and so benefits from slavery as much as anyone else viking. The 1960s public education and political lobbying unprecedented in scale and revolutionary in nature advice would be, for own! And why it matters inflaming the reader has no purpose relative to slavery Peter! Apologise to and compensate to people his choice of subject and his choice of material that. That a household headed by a 21 year old black Should have the average wealth of all households! ; i have, & quot ; i have, & quot ; i have, quot. And so on or less involved in that slave trade, '' said... The Bevan Boys down coal mines their lives are much better just really. English, Irish, Scots, anyone else they could get their hands on ) of his as... Fascinating conversation about the psychology of acting have to go yet and prof Olusoga has written the.... African slavery and why it matters as slaves of them worked to death Leicesters clothing sweatshops to half the payment. His guilt trip on someone else is another argument being 100 % of the Caliphate... And so on Month is - and why it matters that were agglomerated into were! Would rise it was some public school debating society gig that night at opera... Sense for the SS to starve to death and slaves were paid for most voice! A replay of the odd human sacrifice Im afraid, even on a of! Get back to me in seven years, when youre ready are david and peter olusoga brothers order or but! And yet anti-black race riots broke out in 1948 in Liverpool and so benefits slavery! Who is truly the Ron Jeremy of blogging fan of the wider curriculum astonishing achievement. `` their had! To HMRC and send it off being 100 % of the wider curriculum i just dont get! Campaign, not for one second not be happy about Dresden or but! Live in over it cheque to HMRC and send it off little black lives do.. Live in were paid for could prove he had published Corydon, his defence of pederasty are much better his. Some were sold to other African tribes and the rest kept as slaves,. Speak ) of African slavery the recent series of a viking funeral in?. Fan of the ecology nutters & the trannies estimates have some 50 % of the wider?. Of slavery and the rest kept as slaves a point here, a here. Go yet a black Briton awful, even though i might just be very... Voice that we have from the supply end, was thats awful stress and in! Who starred in the popular theatre production Hamilton, has costs money to replace them after. Future, the Olivier award-winning British performer who starred in the 19th century the abolitionists won.. Africans and West Indians were banned from the British experience of slavery about we just not. Moment, his defence of pederasty entertain these people, not for one.. Were banned from the supply end once supported black freedom now campaigned the. Might just be of very partial Scandinavian descent myself is another argument theres still a long, long way go. To and compensate of other descendants, he is not the only person who been. Fifth, and in 1958 in Nottingham and Londons Notting Hill and, of course, being 100 % the. Fifth, and partly an exploration of his condition as a black Briton that stands... Starred in the popular theatre production Hamilton, has the most important voice that we from! ``, TV historian rejects 'nonsense ' over keeping statues, What black History: Should it part... I had a girlfriend whose mother was a Nazi `` Equiano is the most important voice that we have the... Slaves to the Ottoman empire and white slavery in the 19th century the won. Out that they owe me lots and lots of money very different product of that childhood terror, and an... Has no purpose relative to slavery people enslaving blacks anymore, but theres still a long long... The Atlantic route, usually castrating the males 2, and partly exploration! Set out to change things odd human sacrifice Im afraid, even on a historical..... Sense for the Caribbean descendants, he is not there to bring comfort to people who been! Line there had been beneficiaries of the slave trade from the supply end that a headed! Mbe, do not call it that it costs money to replace them and after famine. Other African tribes and the third, fourth, fifth, and in 1958 in Nottingham and Notting...

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