A call for accountability and reparations

THE EDITOR, Madam:

In the global discourse on racial and regional accountability, a critical and often unaddressed chapter of history remains largely unspoken. While the focus has often been on the crimes of ‘Christian’ Europe and its white descendants, a parallel and equally devastating narrative — that of Arab racism, Pan-Arab conquest, and forced Arabisation — has been relegated to the shadows. This oversight is a profound injustice, one that continues to fuel prejudice and exploitation, particularly towards persons of African and Jewish descent. It is high time we confront this reality with the same rigour and demand for justice applied elsewhere.

The historical record is unambiguous. The Pan-Islamic/Pan-Arab conquests, from the Iberian Peninsula to East Africa, were not merely religious endeavours, but acts of territorial expansion and cultural imposition. The history of Andalusia, a supposed golden age of coexistence, was also one of subjugation, where non-Arabs, including native Hispano-Romans and Visigoths, were made second-class citizens. The Arab/Islamic slave trade, a brutal and extensive enterprise, spanned centuries and resulted in the enslavement, castration, and exploitation of millions of Africans, an atrocity whose scale rivals and, in some estimations, surpasses the Trans-Atlantic trade.

However, the legacy of Pan-Arab supremacy extends beyond slavery. It includes the forced Arabisation of indigenous peoples across the Middle East and North Africa. Ancient peoples with their own distinct cultures, languages, and histories — such as the Copts of Egypt, the Assyrians and Chaldeans of Mesopotamia, the Kurds, and the indigenous peoples of Yemen — were often forcibly assimilated. Their languages were suppressed, their identities were eroded, and their lands were brought under Arab rule.

True accountability, however, requires a complete and honest reckoning with all parts of history. To move forward, we must call for a two-fold process: acknowledgement and reparations.

First, there must be a widespread and honest acknowledgement of the historical and ongoing racism embedded within Arab societies and cultures. This requires educational reform that teaches the true history of the Arab/Islamic slave trade, conquests, and the marginalisation of non-Arabs and indigenous peoples. Second, and equally vital is a discussion about reparations. Reparations are not just financial payments. They are a recognition of historical harm and an investment in healing and justice. They can take the form of historical accuracy in education, financial and developmental aid to communities historically impacted, and a commitment to dismantle systemic racism.

FRANCESCA TAVARES