GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Caribbean is observing International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition on Friday, continuing its call for Europe to acknowledge responsibility for the Atlantic slave trade and meet the reparation being sought in this regard.
In a message to mark the occasion, Dr. Hilary Brown, the Programme Manager for Culture and Community Development at the Guyana-based Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, said the day provides the occasion to “pause to reflect on this dark chapter in history and honor the courage and resilience of those who were relentless in the fight for freedom, in Africa, on the slave ships, and in the Caribbean.
“But this day is not only about remembering the past. It is also about understanding the impact of the legacies of these crimes against humanity on our lives today,” she said.
She said that that’s why the CARICOM Reparations Commission continues to call on the colonizers of Europe “to acknowledge responsibility and repair the harm done to Africans for over 300 years by denying our humanity and our freedom, exploiting our labor and subjecting enslaved Africans to unimaginable pain and suffering.
”Let us honor the memory of our ancestors with a recommitment to learning about our history, taking a strong stand against racism, promoting respect for human rights, and being resolute in the fight for reparatory justice,” Brown said.
and then 