The Past as Prologue: Slavery, Colonialism and Modern Human Rights

Abstract

The article reflects on slavery and colonialism and how both historical crimes affect Africa and its peoples. It argues that the struggle against slavery laid the foundation for the modern human rights movement. The desire to recover the losses suffered from the depredations and plunder of colonialism, in part, shaped the evolution of the right to development. The article calls for reparation for Africa for the damages the continent and its peoples suffered from slavery and colonialism. It argues that the concept of universal human rights is meaningless without some form of atonement for universal human wrongs.