Britain abolished slavery in 1833; do you think they helped perpetuate it elsewhere by their actions?

Don Pedro remarks that the British are hypocrites because they block slave ships coming into Cuba on the one hand but purchase Cuban sugar and provide loans to the plantation owners on the other. Britain abolished slavery in 1833; do you think they helped perpetuate it elsewhere by their actions?

Without a doubt they helped perpetuate it. The very fact that Britain bragged that "the sun never sets on the British Empire" means colonialism and treating the original inhabitants as 2nd class citizens.

We also have to remember that not all slavery was abolished by the British. Their focus was on large scale plantations and not slaves they had in other areas where the number of slaves were smaller.

I think it is interesting to read this book in the context of the Royal Wedding taking place. I especially enjoyed watching the faces of the Queen and others as the Gospel Choir sang "Stand By Me." Of course the British were hypocrites. So are the Americans. I do think that Lloyd shows how people are torn by their circumstances on the one hand and by their conscience on the other hand.

@clapshot - so true!
Not fighting to stop a wrong, turning blind eye etc are just as bad as committing the act. It was convenient for them to pretend they know nothing - they still benefitted while acting superior.

They absolutely encouraged and profited from slavery in many of their colonies.

I agree with all of the above entries. The comments about 2nd class citizenship, Americans and British both guilty, and the comment re the author showing conscience versus circumstances was well put and turning a blind eye was also perfect. Right on.

It is clear that Britain helped perpetuate slavery. Unfortunately, it seems that money trumps all other things, not only in the 1860's, but in current politics as well.

Yes, their actions all over the world perpetuated slavery. It was probably much easier for British citizens to feel that they held the moral high ground when they couldn’t see the effects of their policies on the people in British colonies and trading partners.