Great thoughts about the issues surrounding generational movement from countries of origins. My won kids are “half” Russian, and only recently visited Kazakhstan, their mother’s country of origins. I’m lucky to have lived there and speak a bit, but I’m not sure how “ethnically” different they feel than other Americans in their schools, which are very diverse here in Texas.
However, the first four of five UN definition of genocide are not about killing or murder. No one has to die to conduct a genocide. A country needs to only fulfill three of the five. That is to say, ethnic cleansing by government backed forces from Europe taking slaves to the Americas end up fulfilling those requirements of eliminating ethnicity, sadly enough. Language, religion, culture, separation of families—all these occurred and were wiped out from the mind of survivors. Enslaving is much more about than just forced labor—which is atrocious, horrible, and morally reprehensible. But sometimes though we forget about the other aspects and consequences. How do you put human suffering and destroying generational memory into reparations? I don’t know but it should be tried and discussed at least.
These fifty thousand voyages of captured and imprisoned humans from Africa were government funded and backed, not just some “business trips” or random “merchants.” Accountability should be moral and “just” financial. Just my two cents.
Thanks again for your sharing your insights.