Slavery and more

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. See here (official UN site) for more details.


"No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms." Article 4, Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It's been about 200 years since the abolition of slavery in Britain and the British Empire, and an odd altruistic sort of crusade against slavery by the British. It's also around two centuries since US President Thomas Jefferson signed an act banning the slave trade, though slavery continued for years to come.

Of course, slavery and similar practices are still around today.

technorati tags: slavery, history, holidays, UN, british, jefferson, human+rights, racism