Slavery, in any form, is a very bad thing. There was a time in part of our country when black men and women were slaves. Slavery ended in the 1860’s, and about 150 years later the United States House of Representatives has formally apologized to black Americans for the horrible things that happened to their great-great-great-grandparents and the generations preceding them.
The House on Tuesday issued an unprecedented apology to black Americans for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow segregation laws.
“Today represents a milestone in our nation’s efforts to remedy the ills of our past,” said Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, D-Mich., chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus. [source]
I’m sure “Cheeks” Kilpatrick and her friends in Congress have only the best of intentions when they, our representatives, apologize to people who have been dead for over 100 years for something that only a small portion of Americans did.
Don’t get me wrong, I think slavery is absolutely horrible. I believe that black Africans who were forced into slavery deserve at least an apology from the people who were involved in enslaving them. But I don’t think today’s congress has any business apologizing for anything. They represent the entire U.S., not just the states where slavery was practiced. Congress represents me, and I have certainly never owned a slave. I can only speak for myself on this, but I wasn’t involved in slavery, and my representatives in congress don’t speak for me when it comes to apologizing for things I had no part of.
The resolution of apology was spearheaded by Tennessee Democrat Ira “Steve” Cohen. The apology also covers the issue of segregation, which as we all know is the separation or isolation of a race, class, or ethnic group.
Cohen became the first white to represent the 60 percent black district in Memphis in more than three decades when he captured a 2006 primary where a dozen black candidates split the vote. He has sought to reach out to his black constituents, and early in his term showed interest in joining the Congressional Black Caucus until learning that was against caucus rules. [source]
Cohen, who was not allowed to join the Congressional Black Caucus (because of the color of his skin) has apologized for the racial segregation. That’s what I call humor.
So again, slavery and segregation were bad. But those times are over. Today we have a black man running for President with a real chance of winning. Today I live in a neighborhood composed of white, black, and Latino families and we all get along just fine. Today, people of all colors share the same rights and responsibilities here in the United States.
It’s time to stop dwelling on things that happened in the past.
Black people, I love you, but I don’t want my politicians wasting time and money on something that is over and done with. The past can’t be changed. If congress wants to apologize for something, they can apologize for running up trillions of dollars of debt and then stealing money from the paychecks of Americans of every color.
As far as race goes, let’s stop looking backward and start looking forward.
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