SOAS & British Museum

First day in London was rather busy. As soon as we landed in Heathrow, we were headed to SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), University of London for lunch and a lecture on modern day legacy of transatlantic slave trade. 

London was one of the leading ports in the transatlantic trade, including the trade of enslaved Africans. With its reputation as the first port to trade with Africa, the City of London financed slave trade and benefitted greatly from growing production in plantations. A lot of London-based insurance firms, banks and manufacturers thrived on the transatlantic slave trade as well. 

The most interesting part of this lecture was the video of Toyin Agbetu, an African human rights activist, protesting during the bicentenary celebration of the Abolition of the Slavery Trade Act 1807. In the middle of the service, he came forward to doubt the purpose of the service and demand apology from the British government for its leading role in slave trade, or what he refers as the Maafa (African Holocaust).

I was very shocked and disappointed to realize the political reasoning of the celebration. While the British government acknowledges the importance of the abolition of the slave trade, it still does not admit its direct involvement in leading Transatlantic slave trade and or announce its official stance regarding the history. I expected that the UK would have taken responsibility for such dark history that supported the growth of the country as one of the leading countries of the world today, yet there still has not been an official apology from the government or even any type of announcement on its position. 

There was a heated argument about the reason why the British government has not even released its official stance on its involvement yet still continues the tradition of celebrating the abolition act. One of the major opinions was that directly admitting to its involvement would eventually lead to claim of monetary compensations for those who suffered in the history. While it seemed very plausible, it made me feel even more uncomfortable to think that such developed country would not accept its responsibility for the history that served as a foundation for its economic success. 

After the lecture, we proceeded to the British Museum to explore the Africa gallery. I was very moved by the sculptures made with recycled weapons - the chair made of firearms and the Tree of Life, which is also a sculpture built from decommissioned weapons in a shape of tree with animal sculptures surrounding the base of the tree. It made me think about those who suffer from violence and struggle to manage basic living and hope for a brighter future where there is no need for weaponry and money would be spent on those in need instead.