Well, well, well… It seems X CEO Elon Musk has found his way into deep trouble with the Black community after questionable comments about slavery. Shockingly, this isn’t even the first time Musk has been caught cherry picking facts concerning the largest mass genocide in recorded history.
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On X, Musk retweeted a post reviving the topic of reparations — this time for white people — but he didn’t stop there: Musk then gave his own account of history: “Slavery was standard practice throughout Earth until it was almost entirely ended principally by forces in the 19th and 20th centuries.” He continued, “Slavery still exists in some parts of the world btw.”
To be expected, many Black folks online took issue with Musk’s generalizations and “twisted” timeline. @michaelharriot tweeted, “By now, it has become apparent that this man is much dumber than people initially thought, but here is why this specific act of ignorance is so common.”
Musk ended his tweet declaring, “nonetheless, this is true.” But as we all should know, there’s more to the story of slavery. While the earliest recordings of slavery go back to the Mesopotamian and Sumerian civilizations, western chattel slavery is a very niche and complex concept — much different than how Musk described it.
The horrors of chattel slavery were the first of its kind. And it wasn’t “principally” Anglo-American powers that brought the harsh conditions to an end. “B***h. Learn about Haiti,” @Thee_Real_Miki tweeted, referring to the Haitian Revolution, which started with enslaved Haitians who overthrew their French oppressors in 1804, decades before the U.S. Civil War.
While some folks online were taken aback by Musk’s remarks, others said given the native South African’s own racial identity, they’re not even shocked. @Socold2 wrote on X, “Of course a white South African, masquerading as an American would have this view on slavery.”
“When Whites say ‘slavery was normal’ then I always ask them to allow me to enslave them for the next 500 years,” @Ppls_Champ said. This isn’t the first time Musk has shared his questionable thoughts on slavery: Back in 2023, the Tesla mogul tweeted, ” slavery was a standard practice across almost everywhere on earth since humans existed. Only in the last century was it made rare.”
Black folks on X continued giving Musk hell. “Delete this. You are trivializing the pain and suffering of black people for hundreds of years,” @sherrilynthinks said.
“It’s not that black ppl are demanding reparations because we came up with the idea. WHITE PEOPLE came up with the idea, promised it, and DIDNT DELIVER,” @AustinCrute said. “God, what is your obsession with us?!?!”
As his previous comments have shown, Musk is operating with a very different account of chattel slavery. But at least for now, the billionaire hasn’t said another word on the matter.
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