Remembrance
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Remembering Slavery’s Unseen Horrors
Remembering the horrors of slavery is not only an act of history – it is an act of justice. We remember the millions of men, women, and children who were torn from their homelands across Africa, ripped from the arms of their families, and forced into the brutal machinery of the transatlantic slave trade. Their lives were violently uprooted, their identities erased, and their humanity denied.
We remember the pain and trauma of the Middle Passage – the overcrowded, suffocating ships crossing the ocean, where death was a constant companion. We remember the bewilderment and terror of arriving in foreign lands, unable to speak the language, facing the unknown with fear and despair.
We remember the relentless brutality of life on the plantations – the forced labour from sunrise to sunset, the beatings, the separation of families, the denial of education, freedom, and basic dignity. Every aspect of their lives was controlled, commodified, and dehumanised.
And yet, we also remember the strength – the courage to survive each day, the quiet and powerful forms of resistance found in song, language, faith, and the preservation of culture. We remember how, even in bondage, enslaved people nurtured deep bonds of family and community and held onto hope.
After abolition, we remember how freedom was promised, but not fully realised. Systems of oppression simply changed form – through segregation, racial violence, economic exploitation, and systemic discrimination. Many formerly enslaved people were denied land, voting rights, education, and justice.
To remember is to honour. To remember is to resist the erasure of truth, which in itself is a form of violence. In remembering, we do not only mourn what was lost – we acknowledge the legacy that lives on in the strength, creativity, and resilience of the descendants of the enslaved. Their survival and contributions continue to inspire the fight for justice and equality today.
This act of remembrance must be rooted in empathy, truth, and a spirit of love. It calls on us all to face the full weight of history and to commit to healing – from the trauma, from the silence, and from the mental slavery that still lingers in minds, systems, and structures. By doing so, we empower both present and future generations with the knowledge, pride, and purpose needed to move forward with dignity.
In remembering the suffering, we also honour the triumph of the human spirit. And through that memory, we find the strength and responsibility to build a more just, compassionate, and united world. people were denied land, voting rights, education, and justice
To remember is to honour. To remember is to resist the erasure of truth, which in itself is a form of violence.
In remembering, we do not only mourn what was lost – we acknowledge the legacy that lives on in the strength, creativity, and resilience of the descendants of the enslaved. Their survival and contributions continue to inspire the fight for justice and equality today.
This act of remembrance must be rooted in empathy, truth, and a spirit of love. It calls on us all to face the full weight of history and to commit to healing – from the trauma, from the silence, and from the mental slavery that still lingers in minds, systems, and structures. By doing so, we empower both present and future generations with the knowledge, pride, and purpose needed to move forward with dignity.
In remembering the suffering, we also honour the triumph of the human spirit. And through that memory, we find the strength and responsibility to build a more just, compassionate, and united world into the brutal machinery of the transatlantic slave trade. Their lives were violently uprooted, their identities
erased, and their humanity denied.
We remember the pain and trauma of the Middle Passage – the overcrowded, suffocating ships crossing the ocean, where death was a constant companion. We remember the bewilderment and terror of arriving in foreign lands, unable to speak the language, facing the unknown with fear and despair.
We remember the relentless brutality of life on the plantations – the forced labour from sunrise to sunset, the beatings, the separation of families, the denial of education, freedom, and basic dignity. Every aspect of their lives was controlled, commodified, and dehumanised.
And yet, we also remember the strength – the courage to survive each day, the quiet and powerful forms of resistance found in song, language, faith, and the preservation of culture. We remember how, even in bondage, enslaved people nurtured deep bonds of family and community, and held onto hope.
After abolition, we remember how freedom was promised, but not fully realised. Systems of oppression simply changed form – through segregation, racial violence, economic exploitation, and systemic discrimination. Many formerly enslaved people were denied land, voting rights, education, and justice. To remember is to honour. To remember is to resist the erasure of truth, which in itself is a form of violence. In remembering, we do not only mourn what was lost – we acknowledge the legacy that lives on in the strength, creativity, and resilience of the descendants of the enslaved. Their survival and contributions continue to inspire the fight for justice and equality today. This act of remembrance must be rooted in empathy, truth, and a spirit of love. It calls on us all to face the full weight of history and to commit to healing – from the trauma, from the silence, and from the mental slavery that still lingers in minds, systems, and structures. By doing so, we empower both present and future generations with the knowledge, pride, and purpose needed to move forward with dignity. In remembering the suffering, we also honour the triumph of the human spirit. And through that memory, we find the strength and responsibility to build a more just, compassionate, and united world. SUCOTETO
