The Guardian view on the legacies of slavery: the response to Edinburgh’s report must go beyond academia | Editorial

Facing up to the past is crucial. But the real challenge for institutions and the societies they are part of is to act in ways informed by new knowledge The British campaign against slavery and the slave trade has long been recognised as an inspiration for later social movements. But for centuries, the brutality inflicted on the millions of African people who were bought and sold into chattel slavery in British colonies was either veiled from view or treated as a sin that was expunged when it was abolished.New research from the University of Edinburgh, about its history of involvement in slavery and the slave trade, is part of a belated reckoning by UK institutions with this disturbing aspect of their past. Another Scottish university, Glasgow, was among the first to embark on such a process. In response to evidence about substantial gifts from plantation owners and slave traders, it partnered with the University of the West Indies on a reparative justice programme in 2019.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

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