Reflection on the First Universal Slavery from the assumptions of the Philosophy of Liberation

Abstract

At first glance, it may seem that we live in a world in which part of humanity is subject to political, economic, social and cultural domination, while, on the other hand, another very small part enjoys a freedom that allows them to enjoy a series of rights and privileges with which to develop a dignified and prosperous life. But, to think beforehand that, on the one hand, there is a situation of domination, and, on the other, of complete freedom is a somewhat simplistic consideration, since maintaining such an idea could lead us to affirm that the problem of misery and the oppression suffered by the periphery could one day be eliminated if it reached a similar economic-political status to the West. More specifically, it could be argued that ending slavery in the periphery would mean achieving the freedom of Europe or the United States. Which means thinking that such slavery is just the opposite of the freedom that liberalism defends in our societies. Nothing is further from reality. Because seen this way, the only solution that would be to eliminate such slavery would be to build a world in which the ideas of progress, dignity and freedom that the West defends were respected. Many optimists of the current system believe that this is, without a doubt, the particular mission of Globalization.