Part of the problem you face with societies involved with slavery is that they know how fiercely wrong it is and fear the retribution that might occur after emancipation. So the idea itself become dangerous because doing the right thing could lead to immense violence. Hence the society in a lot of ways forms around the institution that was supposed to be the tool of that society and is made subservient in many ways to it. In order to maintain that structure a culture of fear and suspicion forms that was in clear evidence during the desegragation controversies of the 1960s in the South where notable, educated politicians could be seen on television delivering speeches saying that the reason African Americans wanted an end to segragation was to get "your daughters and wives." Kind of an interesting blend of racism and Protestant sexual demagoguery. Oooh. I ramble.

That's interesting. It's like they're trapped. They can't acknowledge the wrong because of the weight of karma that's likely to fall on them.

I say "they" but we Brits were deeply implicated in the slave trade. The 18th century economy flourished because of it. Cities like Bristol were built on it. Is there a monument to the victims of the slave-trade anywhere in Britain? I don't believe there is.

The existence of monuments may be irrelevant, however. Since slavery was only widely acknowledged as an atrocity deserving of social shame since the end of World War II (largely due to Hitler and the "never again" mantra that his atrocities inspired), monuments are unlikely as we have entered an age where they are seen largely as propaganda (pity that). In the states at least, monuments take the form of museums and other permanent exhibitions that "tell the story" of slavery. But I don't know about Britain, really.

I've noted that a lot of European countries adopt a "yes yes, it's true, but we don't talk about that in polite company" attitude about a lot of things.