FYI: This is not going to happen. There is a whole narrative and industry involved in not forgetting slavery and forgetting this is never, ever going to happen.
I had a thought the other day when I watching yet another group of stories on slavery over a couple of days. One was about slavery in America, one was about the origins of Nigeria (great documentary BTW), and one or more “Finding Your Roots” episodes on PBS. What resonated with me on the “Finding Your Roots” episodes were several aspects about some Black Americans: one was disappointed that she was not a descendent from slaves as it messed with her personal narrative and at the same time was personally happy that she was 51.x percent Black so that she wasn’t “White”. Another guest, on a different show, was so totally focused on his anger of the past slavery issue that he could hardly speak and had to suspend the rest of his interview to calm down.
Now that got me thinking. Thinking a whole lot. And it made me ask a rhetorical question. Why the hell are we focused on slavery?
Now I know the issues with slavery. It was abhorrent. The practice of slavery in America is a travesty and a shame. But it is not unique to the United States of America, nor was the practice of slavery abolished when the United States abolished slavery in its borders. In fact, it is practiced to this day. It is just as abhorrent today as it was then; with the possible exception that there was a more universal acceptance of the practice in the past.
I am not one of these who spend a great deal of time discussing the real fact that slavery was practiced by peoples against defeated or suborned people throughout history, but it is a fact. In every Imperial government in history, they enslaved those peoples they defeated; whether it was the Romans, the Spanish, the French, the Portuguese, the Chinese, or (most notable) the British (and I have only touched on a few countries). Serfdom in various countries from Russia westward was it own form of slavery as well. Not to mention the multi-generational effective slavery of the workforces during the early days of the industrial revolution.
But that is not what we are talking about, is it. We here in America, do not discuss slavery in the whole. We discuss Slavery in the specific; the enslavement of Black Africans in the southern parts of the United States. No other slavery is at issue. No other slavery is of importance in any slavery discussion here in America. More’s the pity.
But that is why I am saying Forget Slavery. Why? Because it is not a historical issue anymore. Nor is it an issue of current affairs that anyone seems to be interested in addressing in a meaningful way; save the various NGA’s of the world trying to protect the vulnerable forgotten people throughout the world.
No, I am saying Forget about American Slavery except for your damned genealogy and history books; just like where the damned ridiculous rotten Confederate Flags should reside.
Yes, slavery was rotten, vile, and a travesty. I cannot find words to describe it. I am sure that some people can; I give them props for coming up with better words. I sincerely hope that regardless of where I had been born and raised, as I have ancestry in both the North and South, I would have stood on the side of what was right and fought against it with all of my heart.
But that was then. Now, we should just quit dealing with this. Just as we need to get rid of those red-necked airheads who try to reinvent the antebellum South in their pea-sized brains, we need to quit dwelling on the issues of slavery.
Instead, lets go forward and focus on the issues of equality for NOW. The past is the past. History is history and short of a time machine, it is not going to change. I agree we must never forget the past and we should learn from the past so I am not advocating really forgetting about slavery. But the lesson was learned. I was bad and we (at least the decent we) do not want to go back there again.
Let us go forward towards equality and quit bearing the burden of slavery; after all it is over. Quit complaining about the slavery and do something about Now.
