Ugly practice

If only half of the story of our anonymous Indian man is true, then there is an ugly practice going on our island. It’s called enslavement. Fortunately there are plenty of actors in our community that have the slavery topic high on their agendas. That should put a stop to these practices in a hurry.

If only life was that simple, because our slavery specialists prefer focusing on slavery during the colonial years. That’s a lot easier, because you don’t have to do anything. The struggle with the ugly past of our slavery history comes down to finger pointing and demands for the payment of damages.

There is nothing wrong with that, of course but against the background of the slavery that is practiced today it comes across as academic freewheeling. We know there was a slave trade and we all agree that it was ugly and wrong. We also know with a near one hundred percent certainty that reparation is not going to happen. So why bother?

Why not use all this energy to heal the wounds of our own times? Why not step up to the plate and reach out to all those who are held in enslaved conditions today?

Our attitude to these issues has a strong likeness to reporting about abuse and domestic violence. Come on, We must be able to hear the screams, to see the black eyes and to notice dramatic changes in behavior that are so off, that something ugly must be behind to. Yet, in most cases, we prefer to close our eyes, or to turn our backs on such situations.

Why? Because it is easier. And certainly, somebody else will do something about it? Right? Why get in trouble with the neighbors?

This is the dilemma of our times. We live in comfortable bubbles and we are not waiting for complex situations that are going to disturb the peace. Our peace, that is.

We’re not calling for a witch hunt; that would be irresponsible and that, we are definitely not. But we all could at least open out eyes a bit further and, when we hit upon something suspicious, report it to the right authorities. If that does not help, there are always the media ready to sound the alarm and to draw attention to situations that simply should not be in a society that takes pride in its constitutional status.

Can we really continue with a clear conscience driving our fancy cars and eating our dinners every evening knowing that there are people suffering next door?