UK News
African protestor disrupts London church service on end of slavery
Mar 27, 2007, 12:51 GMT
London - A lone protestor representing an African human rights group Tuesday disrupted a church service in London's Westminster Abbey, attended by Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair, to mark the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade.
Toyin Agbetu, from the Ligali Organization, brought proceedings dramatically to a halt when he ran in front of the altar shouting 'you should be ashamed' and 'this is an insult to us.'
When church ushers and seven bodyguards tried to calm him down in the Abbey's magnificent choir, he shouted: 'Leave me alone, let me go.'
Security guards arrested the 39-year-old protestor, who was restrained by two police officers outside the abbey.
'We should not be here, this is an insult to us. I want all the Christians who are Africans to walk out,' shouted Agbetu.
Outside, he demanded that the queen apologize for her ancestors' role in supporting the slave trade. 'The queen has to say sorry,' he said.
'This nation has never apologized, there was no mention of the African freedom fighters. This is just a memorial of William Wilberforce,' he added in a reference to the English social reformer influential in the abolition of the slave trade in 1807.
Earlier, the congregation of some 2,000 invited guests had observed a minute's silence, followed by the sound of four elephant tusk horns used traditionally to warn of slave raider attacks in West Africa.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
page: 1
So typical a response from you Sean... you are a testament to your own imperial,brutal, blood thirsty, thieving, complacent race.
Have you no shame... I guess it's hard to 'turn the other cheek' and admit to your wrong doing.
I guess that is why you point the finger at others, you are coping out and afraid.
By living in a rich industrialized, technological world that has been created by the inhuman acts of Gemanic/Anglo-Saxon tribes you belong to, you feel righteous in saying 'We Brit's Are Civilized as we sip tea from expensive china...' and therefore no wrong was done.(because this happened too long ago)
Pay up Brits! you owe the Africans Billions of Dollars (It's called payback or backpay)and BILLIONS of APPOLOGIES, maybe that will teach you to be humble and stop abusing the rest of the world.
You have a very strange sense of compasion Sean if that is what you feel.
Remember one thing my little man. One day you will meet your maker and what will you say then!
That Louis couldn't make his own way in the world without trying to heap guilt on others in order to extort payoffs, backpay, apologies, etc. Grow up Louis.
page: 1
Sean ShalorMar 27th, 2007 - 13:31:12
Maybe this gentleman was there to apologise for the predominantly native African people who promoted and supported the slave trade whilst growing rich and fat on proceeds of the sale of their fellow countrymen. Or perhaps he wished to speak on behalf of all those Africans who are still to this day similarly employed, selling hteir children.
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