Michelangelo, Unfinished Slave
2,115 words
One of the perennial accusations against white colonial societies around the globe—in the Americas, Africa, and the Antipodes—is that they are morally illegitimate because other people were there first. This is what I call the “autochthony argument,” from the Greek “αὐτόχθων,” meaning “springing from the land,” i.e., indigenous. According to this argument, the original inhabitants of a land are its rightful owners (“finders-keepers”), and it is a violation of these rights for other peoples to displace them. (more…)
Michelangelo, Unfinished Slave
2,116 words
Translations: Czech, French, Spanish
One of the perennial accusations against white colonial societies around the globe—in the Americas, Africa, and the Antipodes—is that they are morally illegitimate because other people were there first. This is what I call the “autochthony argument,” from the Greek “αὐτόχθων,” meaning “springing from the land,” i.e., indigenous. According to this argument, the original inhabitants of a land are its rightful owners (“finders-keepers”), and it is a violation of these rights for other peoples to displace them. (more…)
Michel-Ange, Esclave inachevé
2,342 words
English original here
L’une des éternelles accusations contre les sociétés coloniales blanches autour du globe – dans les Amériques, en Afrique, et aux Antipodes – est qu’elles sont moralement illégitimes parce que d’autres gens étaient là les premiers. C’est ce que j’appelle l’« argument d’autochtonie », du grec “αὐτόχθων”, signifiant « sortant du sol », c’est-à-dire indigène. D’après cet argument, les habitants d’origine d’un pays sont ses propriétaires légitimes (« découvreurs-gardeurs »), et c’est une violation de ces droits si d’autres peuples les remplacent. (more…)
Miguel Ángel, esclavo sin finalizar
2,245 words
English original here
Una de las acusaciones perenes contra las sociedades coloniales blancas a lo largo del mundo –en américa, áfrica y las antípodas- es que son moralmente ilegítimas porque otros pueblos estaban ahí primero. Esto es lo que llamo el “argumento de la pertenencia autóctona”, del griego “αὐτόχθων,” queriendo decir “brotado de la tierra”, es decir, indígena. De acuerdo con este argumento, los habitantes originales de la tierra son sus verdaderos dueños (“el que encuentra se lo queda”), y es una violación a los derechos que otros pueblos los desplacen. (more…)
Michelangelo, Unfinished Slave
2,117 words
One of the perennial accusations against white colonial societies around the globe—in the Americas, Africa, and the Antipodes—is that they are morally illegitimate because other people were there first. This is what I call the “autochthony argument,” from the Greek “αὐτόχθων,” meaning “springing from the land,” i.e., indigenous. According to this argument, the original inhabitants of a land are its rightful owners (“finders-keepers”), and it is a violation of these rights for other peoples to displace them. (more…)
