Apology For Slavery

I think this is over the top, but before anyone gets their panties in a bunch, I'll explain why. 1. My maternal grandfather was an immigrant...in 1919 at age 9. 2. My maternal great-grandparents may have been immigrants--in the late 1880s. 3. I don't know much about my paternal grandfather's family (sorry!) 4. I can trace my paternal grandmother's grandmother (my great-great-great grandmother) to the DAR during Washington's time--in the Valley Forge, PA area (which I think during that time, most 'slaves' were poor white European indentured servants). It doesn't make much sense to me--my grandpop (#1 example) was made fun of by black people because he couldn't speak english initially (and first learned with a heavy accent). Can I ask for money for that? Probably not (I'd get laughed right out of court for that one!) Since there is not ONE person still alive who can personally remember being a slave, there really is no need to apologize for it. Why? BECAUSE IT'S IN THE PAST! My God, are we going to continue to live in the past? If so, we're never going to grow as people. (And if this sort of thing is going to be a trend, I want an apology for the following things: 1) my ex-husband being an emotional abuser 2) being laid off 3) being diagnosed with MS 4) for liking foods high in fat and calories that make my weight fluctuate 5) the power line that fell in front of my house, took out my water and sewer lines for a month and burned my car...get it? It's absurd! (BTW, for those of you that have gotten this far, you will notice that this post was satirical. It's a joke designed to make you laugh once you realize that you've gotten this far!)

I'm a little confused and baffled by the apology. Was there any mention of why Virginia decided to make an official apology? Was it a political move? What is the purpose? What happens now? This is really something worth looking into.

I'm not African American, so perhaps my views are biased... but my husband and I are planning on adopting two boys from Haiti and we plan on teaching them about their heritage. Haiti has a 95% black population ... many of their ancestors were brought from Africa by the French and the Spainish with plans to be sold into slavery, either in Haiti or the U.S. When slaves greatly outnumbered the government of the day, they rioted and inturn did horrible things to those who enslaved them. Do I think the French and Spainish governments will owe my sons an apology? No. We cannot apologize for something we did not do. We can agree that it was wrong, we can even feel empathy for those who endured it. But, part of an apology includes admission that you are responsible and regretful of the things you have done. All of history we will see examples of tragic things that have been done to individuals and to whole races ... I cannot apologize for any of them, but I can learn from them, teach them to future generations, raise my children to love all people regardless of race and take responsibility for those that I have personally wronged.

Slavery was and is wrong but it is in the past. The people who are alive today did not participate in it. Why apoligize for something you did not do. I think it is just politics as is everything else they do these days.

I am probably going to get in trouble for this one but I am with you I didn't participate in this and they want you to feel bad about it. I am ashamed of what happened and that anyone I was even remotely related to could have participated in anything like that. But you know it was on the news the other night that people in africa are still being sold into slavery just not here. We have evil people selling our own children into slavery here though. Not much said about that either. I could say more but I am a caring person just trying to get by and do not want to upset anyone.