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African Remembrance Day Event in London
African Remembrance Day
Date and time: Tue, 1 Aug 2023 14:00 – Sat, 19 Aug 2023 16:00 BST
Admission: Free.
Place: Museum of London Docklands (Museum of London Docklands Hertsmere Road #1 Warehouse London E14 4AL United Kingdom)
About this event
The 29th African Remembrance Day (ARD) takes place between 13.30pm – 16..00pm on Tuesday, 1 August 2023 at Museum of London, Docklands.
ARD commemorates the experiences and suffering of millions of African men, women and children who perished in the Middle Passage and plantations economies in the New World, as well as on the African continent and Far East. It provides an opportunity to reflect on the journey of their descendants in the fight for justice and equality. It is thus a day for reflection, healing and renewal of the global African family. 3 minutes of silence is marked at 3.00 pm – a minute each for the victims in the Americas, the African continent and the Middle /Far East.
This year’s event, themed ‘Apologies and Atonement for African Slavery’, features two keynote addresses by Priscellia Pyhia Robinson (Birthmark of Africa) and John Dower ( from the Trevelyan family) responding to the increasing appetite for apologies.
Background
Apologies, atonement, and reparations for slavery are currently high on the agenda. On 19 December 2022, Prime Minister Mark Rutte ushered in a historic turning point, as the Netherlands became the first major European national government to formally apologize for its role in enslaving Africans, as well as to commit over £200 million of government funds and resources toward remembrance and restoration work in the former Dutch enslaved colonies. Prime Minister Rutte’s apology (see picture above) comes after city governments, including Amsterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht, issued formal apologies for their own role in the system of trafficking and enslavement of African women, men, and children.
Other institutions in the UK such as the Church of England and even individual families, such as the Trevelyan family, have also recently offered formal apologies and reparations.
The growing apologies and instances of reparations are not unique – coming on the heels of longstanding demands from people of African descent over the last 500 years for justice and accountability. This year ARD reflects on the old and new discourses around apologies and atonement, taking stock of this moment of growing debate and movement on the issue, and examining the multi-dimensional aspects associated with apologies and atonement.
For more information: africanremembrance@gmail.com
Source: eventbrite.co.uk
