It’s often brought up, in discussion of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, that Africans sold their own people into slavery to the Europeans. I thought this was common knowledge, but apparently it is still surprising to some; there was a recent example in which CNN’s Don Lemon suggested the British Royal Family should pay reparations for slavery and his interlocutor pointed out that by that logic the descendants of African chieftains should pay reparations since they are the initiators of enslavement. Lemon sat there in stunned silence and offered no pushback or counterargument.

Not that I think much of Don Lemon, but my point is: this is a common argument brought up in any discussion of slavery and reparations: the Africans started it. Does it matter that they did? If so, why? If not, why not? Does it have any relevance to the issue of reparations?

Topics: Europe, history, America, Africa, slavery