We rented 2 movies last evening. i chose Amazing Grace while Hao-e chose a B-flick Shanghai Kiss. i know, "what the..." must be flashing in your mind now. Shanghai Kiss has the cheerleader from Heroes (the NBC serial)... that's about all... you can google it and find it on imdb. (i ain't gonna say much about it, cos it's not worth the effort.)but anyway, i digress. Amazing Grace is what this post is about. if you are bored like i am and you are taken by grown men in tights and wigs with thick english/scottish accents and girls with huge skirts and heaving breasts, i mean chests, in plunging necklines... OR just simply, you would like to be amazed (pardon me!) by the abolitionists who worked tirelessly in the late 18th and early 19th century to stop the British slave trade, and marvel at the origins and power of this hymn, then this movie is perfect for you. The protagonist William Wilberforce (acted by Ioan Gruffudd... just the name is enough to intrigue... it's welsh btw) was a man torn between public office and God's office. His close friend, who incidentally became the youngest PM in British History at 24 years of age (!) - William Pitt the Younger, suggested he do both i.e. fight 300 MPs in the House of Commons and abolish the inhuman slave trade. Slave trade in those times was so entrenched in the British economy. You had to begin by changing the hearts and minds of the people. Afterall who would work in the plantations and fields of the new colonies like Jamaica? The Brits needed to finance their war efforts with America and later the French. And why would you want to ban the slave trade when none of the africans are complaining? (not as if they could complain, since many just die on the sea) And why let the Spanish or French prosper when we have the poor to feed in UK?
But what about the africans who were forcibly uprooted? The slaves were shackled to unbearable small (4 feet by 16 inches) spaces on the ships and were basically living in their own waste for the journey on the sea which lasted 3-4 weeks. The weakest were thrown into the sea to lighten the load during storms. Often, ships leave with 600(!) slaves but only arrive at the destination with 200 left. The remaining slaves are branded, to quote from the film, in order to "show that you no longer belong to God, but to a man". argh, i shan't reveal too many details here, but really, if you like a great story, and some awesome acting, please watch the film. It'll make you sit up and think hard about things.
It is easy to observe the injustices around you, but will you act on it? Will you bravely choose to do what is right and stand up for your beliefs?
"If it is not you, then who?
If it is not now, then when?"
Comments