A Growing Reckoning of England's Colonialist Past

In the months leading up to Queen Elizabeth's death, there was a growing clamor for independence and accountability over Britain's past crimes such as slavery. In November 2021, Barbados removed the Queen as its head of state, 55 years after it declared independence from Britain, and other Caribbean countries, such as Jamaica, have indicated they intend to do the same.

At the inauguration of Barbados' president in November 2021, Prince Charles acknowledged the "appalling atrocity of slavery" as the nation removed Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.  Critics in Bridgetown questioned why the Queen's son had come at all, pointing out that the island's historical relationship with the crown was rooted in slavery.  "No member of the royal family should participate in our major freedom day," activist David Denny said. "The royal family benefited from slavery financially and many of our African brothers and sisters died in battle for change," added Denny, general secretary of the Caribbean Movement for Peace and Integration.

On a trip to Belize earlier this year, Prince William and his wife Catherine sparked controversy and accusations of colonialism, which forced them to cancel an outing to a local farm.  The farm's Mayan owners are locked into a battle with Williams' Flora and Fauna International charity over land ownership rights.  The village where the farm was located also claimed that they were not consulted on details of the visit, and saw the Prince's move as highhanded.

The next month, Prince William and Kate visited Jamaica  amid protests and calls for reparations . There were also calls for a formal apology for the royal family's links to slavery.  "During her 70 years on the throne, your grandmother has done nothing to redress and atone for the suffering of our ancestors that took place during her reign and/or during the entire period of British trafficking of Africans, enslavement, indentureship and colonization," wrote members of a protest group, the Advocates Network Jamaica.

 

Whether the new King will be able to make a full apology and strengthen the Commonwealth remains to be seen.