Tragedies are remembered on the anniversaries of their occurrence; wars are usually marked on the anniversaries of their beginning or their ending. Slavery is one of those cases where a beginning is not precisely datable, but the ending – at least in a particular polity - is. Although slavery continued in the Empire for a few more decades, it was abolished in Britain in March of 1807. The 200th anniversary is right around the corner and it is becoming a political issue. The issue is thorny because politicians must acknowledge the date and express regret and sorrow for slavery, but they cannot apologize for it officially without leaving an opening for legal demands for reparations on the part of the descendents of slaves. Tony Blair's remark that "" must be understood in that context. The Süddeutsche Zeitung today noted that British cities exhibit very different approaches to the legacy of slavery and uses the example of Liverpool and Bristol, both of which profited enormously from the slave trade for generations. While the city of Liverpool officially apologized for its role in slavery in 1999, Bristol decided not to, even after a public debate in May of last year.

Neither city is shy about it on their webpages. A quick visit to the home pages of these two cities confirms what the German newspaper claims. Bristol will be hosting a major exhibition on the history of the slave trade called "Breaking the Chains" and is leading the way in Abolition 200, a nation-wide commemoriation project. Liverpool is opening a new museum on slavery in August of next year - a year which is also the city's 800-year jubilee.