The Editor, Sir:

Jamaicans are now engaged in a great debate about whether Britain should pay reparations for the atrocity of black slavery. While a debate can be a healthy exercise in furthering the learning process, it can also bring to the surface the stubborn ignorance of those who are gripped in a perpetual state of self-imposed social and cultural amnesia.

From all accounts it would appear that Jamaicans of African ancestry who vehemently oppose the call for reparations are in a chronic state of denial. Many have stated explicitly that slavery happened a long time ago so why bother to remember those horrific days. For them, it is too painful to talk about. Thus, they desperately want to forget their past. These are the people who are ashamed that their ancestors were once subjected to slavery.

However, it should be understood that there is no shame in demanding some of the wealth that our forebears generated many years ago, for slave labour created the enormous wealth that the British people enjoyed throughout the years and still enjoy today. It should also be understood that there is no statute of limitations on one's accumulated inheritance.

I am, etc.,

RUPERT JOHNSON

r.b.johnson@sympatico

Toronto, Ontario

Canada, M1C 3M7