King Charles Calls Slave Trade a "Shameful Chapter" in Antigua Speech
King Charles III told world leaders in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda, on Tuesday that the transatlantic slave trade still casts a shadow over the islands and other Commonwealth members. He did not apologize for Britain's role in it, and he did not offer reparations.
The king gave the keynote speech, the main address at an official opening event, at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, known as CHOGM. The Commonwealth is a group of countries that were mostly once British territories, and its leaders meet to work on trade, development and shared concerns. The meeting runs from 1 to 4 November, and Antigua and Barbuda is the host. Charles is the Commonwealth's head, a role that is symbolic rather than a power to govern.
In the speech, he discussed the history of the transatlantic slave trade, the system that forced millions of Africans across the Atlantic to work in European colonies. Town & Country reported that he described the shameful chapter of history as filling his heart with horror and his soul with profound personal sorrow.
"We cannot change the actions of those who came before us," he said. "We can, however, learn from the past."
The speech stopped short of a direct apology for the United Kingdom's role in the trade. It also did not include reparations, the payments that many Caribbean campaigners have long asked Britain to make for slavery's lasting effects.
For American readers, the history is not far away. Ships carried enslaved people to colonies across the Americas, including the land that became the United States, so the trade is part of American history as well as British and Caribbean history.
The speech was reported by The Associated Press, which carried the king's words to audiences in the region and beyond. The leaders' meeting continues through Wednesday, 4 November.
