Last month, T.I. called out Lloyd’s of London over its role in the Transatlantic slave trade and demanded that the international insurance market fork over reparations to descendants of the enslaved. The company responded with an apology statement published by Forbes on Friday (Aug. 14).
“There are aspects of the market’s past about which we cannot feel pride and this includes the fact that insurers in the Lloyd’s market insured vessels that were involved in the eighteenth and nineteenth century slave trade. As representatives of today’s Lloyd’s market, we are deeply sorry for this.
“We cannot unfortunately undo the past, but we would like to play an active role in trying to level the playing field for Black and Minority Ethnic people in today’s world,” the statement continues. “On [June 10], we announced an initial action plan that focuses on education, research and significant funding for charities and other [organizations] that promote opportunity and inclusion for Black and Minority Ethnic colleagues. There is much more to do and we will work with our Cultural Advisory Group to determine our longer term plans. We will update our website as our plans develop.”
Tip wasn’t so impressed with Lloyd’s of London’s mea culpa. He penned a four-page letter to the company outlining the systematic oppression that has affected Black people for centuries, and reiterated his demands — which include diversifying the company’s board, and allocating 10% of its earnings, (along with a one million equity line of credit) to descendants of those enslaved.
“We find Lloyd’s actions to rectify the situation to be admirable but insufficient,” he wrote in part.
It’s been an eventful week for the rapper, activist, and father of seven. On a more personal note, Tip caught his 15-year-old son, King, casually preparing to smoke weed while sitting in a hot tub, and streamed the incident on Instagram Live. Although he was clearly upset, Tip’s reaction to King brought on more social media criticism, namely over the double standard between how he raises and reprimands sons versus his daughters.