Ok - Today's rant is regarding this story on CNN, detailing how the University of Virginia has passed a referendum apologizing for the fact that the school used slave labor between 1819 and 1865.
I have REAL problems with what they University did along with the whole VA legislature that set the precedent. (and I know this isn't the only example)
Why are they still apologizing? I mean - let's do the math. It's 2007. That means it's 143 years since the last year they used slave labor. So for someone to have been one of the slaves working there, figure they started working at age 10 (probably too young but it's a number.) They would have to be 153 years old today to receive this apology. Added to that, people in charge of the school would have to be 173 years old to be here apologizing.
Why people now feel the need to apologize for something that happened a) 200 years ago and b) was the norm for the time does not make sense to me. In my mind, one should only apologize for something they had a direct hand in. (this does not count for things like when someone says they are sick and you say "i'm sorry..." that's empathizing, feeling bad that they feel bad.) These people did not themselves employ slaves and the slaves that were employed are long since dead. There are no more slaves in this country. The more people continue to apologize for something they didn't do, the more they indicate that they are at fault and give power to something that doesn't deserve power. It gives credence to the concept of "we were slaves 200 years ago, so we deserve special treatment and kid gloves now." I *HATE* that concept. You weren't a slave, you didn't suffer the pains and hardships, so why do you get the apology?
Does that make sense?
it's something that just frustrates me to no end. Where are the apologies to oh.. say the jews? We were slaves 3000 years ago. Did the apology time frame expire? Or how about the women who all throughout history had to server husbands and families with no pay or recognition or any say in their own fate, simply because they lacked a certain extremity? Have the romans apologized to the greeks and all other nations they conquered for taking them slaves?
Ya know - in Judaism on Yom Kippur (the day of atonement) people apologize and ask forgiveness. (only for things THEY have done mind you.) If person B does not forgive person a, then A can ask again. If person B denies forgiveness 3 time, then that is now THEIR sin and no longer person A's. To me - apologizing this many years after the fact, for something you were never directly involved in is a sin in and of itself, especially as the victims are not there to forgive you. . .
Just my thoughts for the day. . . .
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2 comments:
fuck0ff
I know this will come as a big surprise to you but I agree totally. The wording makes it less somehow (regret at the State's role in it) but the overall concept is getting into the ad nauseum category. The state was enforcing their own laws at the time, and to express regret for the moral (don't you love that concept?) regressiveness that permitted the institution is okay as far as it goes... I don't see why it has to go any further than that. The White House was also built with slave labor, and their owners were paid for their service. Hmmmm, I wonder who should apologize for that one?
Think of the repercussions though if states start apologizing for enforcing their own laws. Let's see, we have right turn on red now, so for all of you who got tickets and fines or lost your licenses for turning on red when it WASN'T allowed, we deeply regret that.
i dont like the word sin.
never have but it has its purpose.
slavery is something is awful especially what the americans did and the africans did there own kind during that time. its one thing to defeat a people and force them into slavery its another to capture those people and take them from there homeland and force them into slavery.
at any rate - its not something any one that i know of that has participated in so why would you apologize for something that someone else did? it would be like me apologizing for the korean war. i wasnt even alive yet.
at any rate i undertand the why of the apology but i think they went about it wrong.
you are right it should be something like - we are sorry for what our forefathers did and we empathize with the descendants of the slaves. we would like everyone to know that this school no longer holds these beliefs and while we cannot repair the damages that were done to these people we can say that it will never happen again... or something like to that effect.
dont apologize for something you didnt do...
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