Talk of past human rights violations appears to be times of yore; particularly from corporate America and the European Union. Under these colonial governments wealth gained is hereditary and its corporate royalties presently active. EU human rights violations in Africa lasted 400 years and on no account spent one day in court for their crimes against humanity.

America and the European Union appear to be suffering from social amnesia, restitutionitis, and compensationism. Wikipedia says, the law of restitution is the law of gains-based recovery. It is to be contrasted with the law of compensation, which is the law of loss-based recovery.

Today’s human rights pontificators operate as though the European Atlantic slave trade in African people and their “Peculiar Institutions” throughout the Americas do not warrant court authorized mention and reparations. There is no documentation in recorded history to the contrary.

A change of mind accompanied by regret and change of conduct for past colonization is behavior Europeans and Americans cannot demonstrate toward Africans. It has become impossible.

If we are to speak of today’s African human rights abusers we ought to start with naming all the European backed African military generals (for example Sese Mobutu) who in the past and present plundered the treasuries of their country, opened American, Swiss, Spanish, French, English, and German bank accounts and deposited billions of dollars with authorized permission. Government sanctioned criminal conduct is not exclusive to Africa.

“Respect for human rights, freedom and democracy" without a judgement day for past crimes is a shaggy dog story.

Lloyd Whitefield Butler, Jr. 295 Clinton Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11205