Comments on: Renewed push for slavery apology begins

By: Sister Toldjah

Sister Toldjah — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:37:24 +0000

T-Steel, are you a Dem? If so, your party needs a lot more rational voices like yours!

By: Severian

Severian — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:28:34 +0000

That’s a mature, rational attitude T-Steel, it’s too bad more people don’t feel that way.

By: T-Steel

T-Steel — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:06:35 +0000

As a black man, I’m tired of the “Apology for Slavery Movement”. My wife and I paid a decent amount of money to trace our family roots. What we found out gave us that connection that we were looking for. I even now the slavemaster that owned my great-great-great grandparents. That being said, I don’t need an apology from the ancestors of that unfortunate part of our history. I just need us to not go down that road again. And guess what, we aren’t. Good enough for me.

By: Sister Toldjah

Sister Toldjah — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 11:28:58 +0000

I’m not sure why you thought that Brownback was the one being dragged into this, rather than Harkin.

James, I didn’t assert that Brownback had been “dragged” into anything. I wrote that it was unfortunate that he “chose” to be a part of it.

By: Steve Skubinna

Steve Skubinna — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 09:48:28 +0000

So I don’t suppose that whole Civil War thingy counts for anything, then, does it?

Well, my ancestors never owned slaves – at least not in America. No telling what sort of nonsense they got up in the Old Country, but I figure they left that behind to become Americans. So count me out of any apology. I will apologize for wrongs I personally committed, and categorically reject this racist attempt to inflict guilt upon an innocent segment of America.

By: camojack

camojack — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:48:57 +0000

It’s the whole White Guilt/Sins Of The Fathers thing.

I have personally never owned a slave and, as a Â¼ Cherokee, some of my ancestors were plenty oppressed as well; I think we all need to moveon.org…

By: Dean

Dean — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 04:33:54 +0000

I was kinda thinking that whole Civil War thing which was carried out by the Federal Government and which ended slavery would’ve been a sufficient stand-in for any politically-motivated “apology”.

By: James

James — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 03:32:34 +0000

It’s unfortunate that Senator Brownback chose to be a part of this.

Actually, for better or worse, Brownback didn’t chose to be a part of this — he’s been leading the way.

Brownback has a history of introducing similar legislation for other groups, such as American Indians. And this fall, he announced that he had found a Democratic partner to sponsor an apology for slavery with him; this is obviously the current proposal with Harkin.

I’m not sure why you thought that Brownback was the one being dragged into this, rather than Harkin. If it was because Brownback is a Republican and a conservative, I’d point out that this is clearly an issue that doesn’t fall neatly across party or ideological lines. (Just consider that some of the fiercest opposition to the state apologies in the last year came from black Democrats.)