Not my words, but those of one of Vat City's top dogs. Yeah, you know, the seat of the papal papa. Just recently I read an article entitled "Human trafficking worse than African slave trade:Vatican official", written by an Associated Press reporter. Who knew? I mean, after reading up all those history books, perusing websites dedicated to the African holocaust, who the hell knew that modern day slavery would even begin to touch, no, be on par with the horrors that went on for four centuries? And who gave Mr.-Cardinal-Renato-Martino-former-longtime-Vatican-envoy-to-the-United-Nations-and-current head-of-the-Holy-See's-office the right to have the official say-so? Isn't it the Vatican peeps who constantly keep making apologies for their sins against humanity whether for aboriginal annihilations, homophobic attitudes, crimes against children, or for their racist ways? After reading the article, if the whole purpose was to highlight the atrocities that are being committed in the present with so little regard for the multitude of lessons we SHOULD HAVE LEARNED from the past, then why even mention or compare this "modern-day slavery" to 400 years of horrific free labour upon which Western society was built? Actually, what's happening could be a work in our favour all over again but then again maybe not. We're already industrialized and capitalist to the bone. You'll never be able to compare a so-called “third world” modern-day girl forced into prostitution (which also happens on the streets of North America) to thousands of black souls chained together and tossed off slaveships in the middle of the Atlantic ocean; or modern-day children forced into labour/militia to generations of grown men and women who were treated like beasts, and humiliated at every waking moment of their lives while well-meaning “civilized” folk turned their heads the other way. Please! Keep these times in history separate!!! Yes, we should learn to not make the same mistakes, but for God's and Goddess' sake, don't call up the name of the dreaded African slavery legacy and compare it to anything that is going on in the world today. As a matter of fact, this dark legacy (no pun intended) could probably, maybe, possibly, be equal to ALL of the atrocities put together that are going on in the world today. I'm taking a chance on saying that but this just goes to show how little mankind really cares about the atrocities that happened to Blacks. It's almost as if he's saying that the slave trade wasn't all that bad and that there could actually be something else with which to compare it. There will never be anything with which to compare it. None of what went on in the past or what’s happening in the present is right or conscious. The African slave trade was incomparable and has left an indelible mark on mankind that has yet to heal. And by the way, all those years ago, I’m sure those poor victims also regarded their plight as “modern slavery”.
I'm usually pretty tolerant when it comes to different religions but that holier-than-thou Catholic head-of-the-class nutcase needs to check himself (actually, they all need to do this and quit putting their feet in their mouths) and get educated about what's really going on before starting to even compare!Here's a link to the article. I'm done. http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/11/15/news/nation/15_04_0711_14_06.txt
3 comments:
I agree with you that Slave Trade wasn't all that bad as I personally feel if we didn't have it Most of us wouldn't be here. Many of our fore parents came from Europe to be overseers etc on plantations on the island in the Caribbean.
sexy fran,
i never said the african slave trade wasn't all that bad. that's what the article said. didn't you read my extensive rant? true, most of us from the caribbean wouldn't have been in that region if it weren't for that horrible systemic kidnapping of black people from their homelands. but which side are you on? the slavers or the slaves? i understand that many West indian people are a mix of both heritages but i'm not going to boast that anyone in my family was an overseer as i wouldn't boast that any of my descendants were slaves. there's nothing to be proud of with a heritage like that. what i would be proud of is the tenacity, strength and faith that bore my ancestors through their ordeals. i think that there may have been only a few of my ancestors who were enslaved and then i don't know how horrific it was for them especially if they were born on st vincent. i thank the caribs for that and keeping the europeans at bay for as long as they did. or else, st vincent may have had slave populations as high as those of jamaica and barbados. you sound pretty proud of your european background and i say, "more power to you", but i have a different experience, especially wearing the skin complexion i was born with.
Is sexy fran okay?? wow...wtf?
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