The family of the prestigious actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who has played Doctor Strange in the Marvel movie universe for the last few years, could face legal problems before the Caribbean island of Barbados, due to the family’s past with the surname, as they are accused of the slavery of 250 people in the year 1728.
At the time, it is said that the Cumberbatch family received a payment of more than one million pounds in today’s money, due to the fact that all the slaves were removed when it was abolished. It is estimated that they will make a payment of this amount to repair the historical damage caused around the 18th century, and although hundreds of years have passed, they are aware that it is the least they can do to pay for the sins of their ancestors.
David Comissiong, the Barbados ambassador to Caricom and deputy chairman of the state’s task force, told The Guardian last month that Drax and other families could face litigation if they don’t agree to pay reparations.
“It is now a matter that is before the government of Barbados,” he told the newspaper. “It is being dealt with at the highest level.”
Now, the Cumberbatch family faces being targeted for a reparations claim. When pressed by The Telegraph on whether Cumberbatch’s family would be pursued, Comissiong did not rule it out.
He said: “This is at the earliest stages. We are just beginning. A lot of this history is only really now coming to light.
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