Today is International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade and its Abolition.
The day is intended to inscribe the tragedy of the horrific trade in the memory of people.
In a message, Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, noted that to draw lessons from this history, people must lay this system bare, deconstruct the rhetorical and pseudo-scientific mechanisms used to justify it.
She said it is time to fight against present-day forms of enslavement, which continue to affect millions of people, particularly women and children.
The night of 22 to 23 August 1791, in Santo Domingo (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic) saw the beginning of the uprising that played a crucial role in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.
It is against this background that the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is commemorated on 23 August each year.
Full Message From Ms Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO
on the occasion of the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition
23 August 2019
This 23 August, we honour the memory of the men and women who, in Saint-Domingue in 1791, revolted and paved the way for the end of slavery and dehumanization. We honour their memory and that of all the other victims of slavery, for whom they stand.
The fight against trafficking and slavery is universal and ongoing. It is the reason for which UNESCO led the efforts to launch the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.
This special day acknowledges the pivotal struggle of those who, subjected to the denial of their very humanity, triumphed over the slave system and affirmed the universal nature of the principles of human dignity, freedom, and equality.
The horror of slavery makes us think about and question humanity. Slavery is theproduct of a racist worldview which perverts all aspects of human activity. Established as a system of thought, illustrated in all manner of philosophical and artistic works, this outlook has been the basis for political, economic, and social practices of a global scope and with global consequences.
It persists today in speeches and acts of violence which are anything but isolated and which are directly linked to this intellectual and political history.To draw lessons from this history, we must lay this system bare, deconstruct the rhetorical and pseudoscientific mechanisms used to justify it; we must refuse to accept any concession or apologia which itself constitutes a compromising of principles.
Such lucidity is the fundamental requirement for the reconciliation of memory and the fight against all present-day forms of enslavement, which continue to affect millions of people, particularly women and children.
