Post Colonial Moment: Guilty White Liberalism gone terribly wrong

I was just forward an article today about an American white couple in Haiti raising money to build an "amusement park" that gives other guilty white liberals the opportunity to 'understand' what it is like to be a slave for 12 hours.

From Metro UK

A theme park where visitors 'play' the role of a slave could soon be a reality for guilt-ridden Europeans wanting to come to terms with their ancestors' brutality.

Memory Village will allow visitors to be bound and tortured at a resort in Haiti, which was a slave nation before becoming the world's first black republic.

Tourists can play the part of a slave for 12 hours, in which they get a feel for the hardship endured in the Latin American country more than 200 years ago.
They can choose if they want to be spectators or participants. If they take part, they will be given traditional African clothing and then 'kidnapped', chained and forced to march to a slave ship in a mock crossing of the Atlantic.

They will then be part of a re-enactment where slaves were taken to market to be sold and later broken down with uktorture in quarantine and put to work on a plantation.

Towards the end of the 12-hour stay, visitors will take part in a recreation of the slave rebellion which eventually led to the establishment of Haiti.

Americans Ron and Carla Bluntschli, who are behind the project, have set up a foundation to get Memory Village off the ground and have already raised enough money to buy half the land needed for their attraction.

Mrs Bluntschli said: 'Slavery is a terrible wound. Germany is still suffering trying to get over the Holocaust, and this is a Holocaust that happened for centuries.'

The couple, who have lived in Haiti for 22 years, need $700,000 (£350,000) in total to complete their theme park.

If this isn't offensive, than I don't know what. I am all for educating people about history, but this is not the way to do it. For one thing there is no way anyone can truly understand the horror of slavery in 12 hours. Secondly, wouldn't it have made more sense and have been a little less insensitive to have just started up a museum or some forum to educate visitors about Haiti's colonial past and modern day slavery around the world. Here is a better idea: why don't the Bluntschlis collect money to donate to help support positive political, social and economic progress in Haiti, as many of the problems the island is still dealing with today stems from colonialism and slavery. Or maybe having a 'people to people exchange' where visitors meet with Haitians and get a first-hand account of the issues in the country. Furthermore, do the Bluntchlis plan to donate any money earned from admission, if there will be any, to Haitians or will they be keeping for themselves. Why am I not supprised that dirty capitalism is once again ravishing Haiti. I wouldn't more be suprised if there is going to be a gift shop on site for visitors to purchase 'slavery' sourvenirs.


But thats just me...