"Such an apology will help us to try to be better children of God and better representatives of all the people of this state."
AP/TN (April 7th, 2007)
The North Carolina Senate this week apologized for the Legislature's role in promoting slavery and Jim Crow laws that denied basic human rights to the state's black citizens, and the Senate unanimously backed a resolution acknowledging its "profound contrition for the official acts that sanctioned and perpetuated the denial of basic human rights and dignity to fellow humans."
"This is a way to reflect upon this and express our understanding and our regret for official actions of our state," said Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, adding that such an apology will help us "to try to be better children of God and better representatives of all the people of this state."
According to the AP report, the North Carolina House would have to approve the measure for it to be formalized.
The report added that several white senators recalled their own links to slavery, with Democratic Sen. Bill Purcell saying his grandfather had owned slaves and Republican Sen. Jim Jacumin saying his ancestors' suffered due to religious bias. "Any conflict or wrongdoing can never have a closure until there is an apology or reconciliation has occurred," Jacumin said.
Source: AP
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