African Descent

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The international community led by the United Nations observes the International Day for the Remembrance of Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade on Monday, March 25.  Undoubtedly, the transatlantic slave trade was the largest forced migration in history and is undeniably one of if not the most inhumane acts against any set of people.  The widespread exodus of more than 15 million African men, women and children from the motherland was conducted over 400 hundred years.  For over four centuries the development of Europe was intricately tied to the sweat, tears and blood of our African ancestors. We must never forget that the greatest forced movement of Africans was to the Americas to work as chattel slaves on sugar plantations, rice and coffee plantations.  Chattel slavery is a form of slavery in which human beings are considered to be property and are bought and sold as such.  The African Holocaust or Maafa involved numerous European powers such as Spain, Britain, Denmark, and The Netherlands who were all responsible for the trafficking of our ancestors.   Additionally, the royal families across Europe, as well as large international investment firms had invested heavily in the transatlantic slave trade. It is never too late for them to be held accountable. The legacy of this forced migration of our ancestors is still with us in the large populations across the Americas of descendants of the enslaved Africans.  It bares thought that the issue of reparation and reparatory justice must also be part of the discussion going forward as we work to engage and to explore ways to make right the wrongs of the past. In commemoration of the memory of the victims, the United Nations General Assembly has called for the establishment of an outreach programme to mobilize educational institutions, civil society, and other organizations to inculcate in future generations, the causes, consequences and lessons of the transatlantic slave trade and communicate the dangers of racism and prejudice.  As the global community continues to observe the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024) we are reminded that we all have a part to play as descendants of enslaved ancestors in ensuring that we help to raise the awareness regarding one of the darkest chapters of human history.  
In the words of Sir Hilary Beckles, this is not about retribution and anger it’s about atonement; it’s about the building of bridges across lines of moral justice.

#RememberSlavery
#AfricanDescent

Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and/or gender issues.
waykam@yahoo.com
@WayneCamo


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