HOMELESS STATUE


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'We did it!'


West Africa Squadron Memorial Fund raised £70,000 to build a memorial to the West Africa Squadron



Colin Kemp's, ameteaur historian from Chichester objective was to create a memorial for the men of the West Africa Squadron who perished while enforcing the naval ban on slavery. With the generosity of the general public, this goal was accomplished. All it needs now is a home for the public to enjoy and learn about the untold stories of British history.



BLACK LIVES MATTER UK commends the artistic contributions of Vincent Gray the sculptor and Colin Kemp who helped raise funds to build a memorial to the men of the West Africa Squadron, many who lost their lives enforcing the naval ban on slavery.


The West Africa Squadron was believed to have been racially mixed, with up to 20% comprised of newly freed Black West African men, although the officers who led the squadron were all white British, Europeans.



The Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 marked a milestone in Britain's history.


We anticipate the establishment of a dedicated site for this memorial sculpture honouring the Royal Navy Squadron's efforts to combat the slave trade and for the sake of the homeless statue.


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Whilst we agree, we can most definitely acknowledge and share the significant story of the contribution of the West Africa Squadron, where many put their lives on the line and those who were lost fighting the slavers whilst implementing the new British law after the abolition of slavery. We remain firm in our support for the call for reparations while honouring those who fought to disrupt the organised illegal crimes of imprisoning 'slaves' to benefit from heinous acts of slavery. We believe it is possible to do both without detracting from either. Stories of Black and white history are deeply entwined and go hand in hand. It is always the truth that people need more to come to terms with all of history in full, not just the part that one side wants the world to hear as its 'truth', which when it comes out is often actually found to be steeped in buried lies.


In addition: The thought and idea of awarding Black people, and African descendants of the Britain's Transatlantic Slave Trade 'Reparations' remains a controversial, inconvenience and touchy subject for successive British governments led by its predominantly white MPs to fairly debate, and for its population tocontemplate. We deeply feel that compensation and reparation should have been provided at point of abolishment to the enslaved, BUT it wasn't and doesn't mean it the end of the subject nor debate. Reparations must be applied justly to correct the harm and trauma that doesn't come with an expiry date egregiously and grossly done by one hand of humankind to the other. This must be achieved to ever be able to reach a point of conciliation, and or be it reconciliation. White Britian must come to terms with Britian taking full accountability and responsibly and that mean reparations. Least to compensate for the trauma and pain of its lasting legacy that is still apparent and felt today in every space, including health, education, the criminal justice system, workplace, and business. All these places are where Black people are physically and economically disenfranchised. more fyi Debt FACTS >>


Let us together unite to continue to raise awareness and advocate for equality and justice for all individuals impacted by historical and present-day injustices.


FTR For the record:

The British were NOT the first in the world to end slavery, Haiti ended slavery in 1804. The British ended its slave trade few years later in in 1807.


François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture, also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda, was the leader of the Haitian Revolution, the first successful slave rebellion since Spartacus against the Roman Republic.


Toussaint L'Ouverture abolished slavery in Haïti ahead of the English, Spanish and Portuguese.


Toussaint Louverture’s military genius and political acumen transformed an entire society of slaves into the first successful slave uprising that led to the independent state of Haiti. It was the greatest slave uprising since Spartacus, who led the revolt against theRoman Republic. The success of the Haitian Revolution shook the institution of slavery throughout the New World. - BHM.ORG.UK


Haiti ended slavery before Britain, off the back of the Haitian revolution in 1804. Britain ended the trading slaves 1807, but the inhumane practice continued long into the 1860s.


Additional Source:

Toussaint Louverture | National Museum of African American History and Culture


The official date for Britain's ending of slavery was in 1833, when British government decided to compensate its white owners for their loss in compensation of freeing slaves and NOT the Black Africans they enslaved. Many white British people are still confused on this subject, not educated on the facts of Britain's horrible history of the transatlantic slave trade and the compensation paid. Compensation paid to white British slave owners is NOT reparations.


The Black Africans enslaved, their descendants, Black communities effected by its legacy have not received a penny nor pound to this day.



fyi

Haïti became the first independent Black country in the modern world to end slavery 1804

January 1, 1804: Proclamation of the Independence of Haiti


Jun 27, 2024, January 1, 1804, a significant event in world history occurred: the proclamation of the independence of Haiti.


On January 1, 1804, a significant event in world history occurred: the proclamation of the independence of Haiti.


On that day, Haïti became the first independent black country in the modern world, marking the end of more than a decade of bitter struggle against French colonial oppression and slavery.


Historical context

The Haitian Revolution began in 1791, when a slave uprising broke out in the French colony of Saint-Domingue. Led by iconic figures such as Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Henri Christophe, this rebellion was inspired by the ideals of freedom and equality of the French Revolution. However, unlike the revolution in France, the struggle in Haïti aimed not only to overthrow colonial authority, but also to abolish slavery and establish a free and egalitarian society



fyi FACTS

Astonishing News FACT: Hard to swallow particularly for British taxpayers. Whilst Slavery was abolished 1807 the UK only finished paying its debts to white slave owners in compensation for its loss of its Black slaves in 2015.


The enslaved got absolutely nothing in compensation for being forcibly enslaved for hundreds of years.


During the George Floyd protests and other fatal police shootings in the States, a global reckoning occurred not just for Black America, but also for the United Kingdom.


Imperial history and Britian's legacy of slavery.

In 1833, Britain allocated 40% of its national budget to purchase the freedom of all slaves in the Empire. The sum borrowed for the Slavery Abolition Act was so substantial that it was not repaid until 2015. This revelation was particularly shocking and hurtful to Black British taxpayers, who discovered that they had been paying white slave owners for the enslavement of their ancestors.


Therefore, this means that most adult British citizens living helped pay for the end of the slave trade with their taxes.


When the United Kingdom abolished slavery, the government compensated white slave owners for the value lost from freeing enslaved people. It is factually true that the of England recently paid off these debts.


Slavery and abolition in the British Empire

The British were instrumental in establishing the Atlantic trade, facilitating chattel a brutal practice profoundly influenced most societies in the Atlantic world.


Portugal and Britain were the two most egregiously accomplished slave-trading countries, accounting for about 70% of all Africans transported to the Americas. Britain was the most dominant between 1640 and 1807, when the British slave trade was abolished - British National Archives.


According to modern research,12.5 million people were transported British colonies across the Americas the Caribbean. However, only 2.7 million people survived the harrowing "middle passage" in the confines of slave ships across ocean.



Anti-slavery sentiment grew in Britain during this period, many British and African abolitionists campaigned for an end to the slave trade. In1807, the Parliament passed Slave Trade Act, which outlaw the in the British.


Many, however, simply evaded its restrictions. Slave ships were regularly fitted out in British ports like or Bristol, London, Liverpool, Portsmouth. In fact, until 1811, carrying and having equipment like shackles was not considered of involvement in the slave trade.


British slavers and capital were still involved in the trading of African people to plantations in major slave societies like Brazil, Cuba and the United States for years after the slave trade's official abolition.


In 1834, the British government outlawedslavery in Britain and its American possessions, though Britian did not end it colonialism in Asian colonies such as British India and what would become Sri Lanka.



Compensating slave owners after abolition


The British government also paid 20 million pounds – The equivalent of approximately 17 billion pounds today was to compensate slave owners for the lost capital associated with freeing slaves. This payout a substantial 40% of the government's budget and necessitated numerous bonds slave owners to implement the law.


These obligations to slave owners and institutions were debts that the UK government paid off only in 2015.

The British UK Treasury continued to compensate the descendants of slave owners for decades after the abolition of slavery in the British empire. The payments were not scrutinised until the British Treasury tweeted out the historical fact in 2018, that caused shock, horror and uproar of it hidden horrible history of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.


The amount money borrowed for the Slavery Abolition Act was so substantial that it was not fully repaid until 2015 This means living British, including Black British citizens, were required to contribute to the repayment of the incurred to end the slave trade.


The tweet was widely criticized at the time, with many outraged that current British tax dollars were compensating the descendants of slave owners. The Treasury later deleted the tweet. Too late, Twitter, rebranded 𝕏 keeps receipt for users to copy and millions did!


British government hasn't disclosed a complete list of the recipient individuals and firms of bonds related to compensation for slaves.Researchers at University College London have compiled a list of over 46,000 current individuals and groups who have received government payouts related to the abolition of slavery. Many powerful British families, including current business and political elites in the United Kingdom are among the recipients uncovered by the UCL team. Not all recipients were wealthy or became so due to the payouts; UCL records show many middle-class Britons also benefited from the bonds. A couple, or few white British families that inherited and benefited from the payout and actively choosing to compensate by supporting projects in the Caribbean.


Britain among other colonial European countries opted fast and ready to appease its slave owners and to impose the responsibility of paying for the end of slavery by way of a taking out a staggering debt lasting over hundred more years to be paid by its future generations of what ws to soon become a society of multicultural British nationals and citizens. Kris Manjapra wrote for The Guardian in 2018.


Economists and political scientists have since debated whether the payouts were necessary for the successful abolition of slavery, some arguing that political will would have been better used to compensate Black slaves instead. Whilst Black people all over the world are seeking reparation while white governments willfully to eradicate racism and level up.


White society sill benefits for slavery, from it modern day multicultural labour employed often on less pay than their white counterparts in all of its major infrastructure's that keep Britian moving and its NHS running keeping white British people well and alive, yet Black people are still disfranchised by racism today.




Ready to learn more about transatlantic slave trade?


The European Influence on Africa

Europe had no contact with Sub-Saharan Africa before the Portuguese, seeking wealth and gold, sailed down the western coast of Africa and reached the Gold Coast (modern-day Ghana) in1471.Initially focused on obtaining gold, Portugal established trading relationships and built El Mina Fort to protect its interests in the gold trade.


The convergence of European powers in Sub-Saharan Africa set in motion a devastating process that fused sophisticated labor exploitation, international commerce, mass enslavement, and an elaborate race-based ideology to create the Transatlantic Slave Trade.


Over the following decades, the Spanish, English, French, Dutch, Danish, and Swedes began to make contact with Sub-Saharan Africa as well. Portugal soon converted El Mina into a prison for holding kidnapped Africans, and European traffickers built castles, barracoons, and forts on the African coast to support the forced enslavement of abducted Africans.



Remembering Matilda

Matilda was the last survivor of the transatlantic slave trade


January 13th 2025 marked 85 years since the death of Matilda, whose name at birth was Abake – meaning ‘born to be loved by all’ among the Tarkar people of Western Africa.


Abake was her West African birth given name, she was then stripped of all African connection, culture, roots and her family.


Abake's African birth name was stripped from her by her American colonial master who subsequently now owned her during the period of legal slavery of Black people in USA and other countries colonised by European's, including Britian who was a major play in the transatlantic slave trade.


Matilda was enslaved after being forcibly taken from her homeland in Africa. She was shipped on an overcrowded vessel of enslaved Africans, where many aboard were killed or died from disease during the Middle Passage journey. Those who did not survive were thrown overboard before reaching the United States of America, where they were forced to spend a lifetime of hard labour working for their white masters and mistresses, before slavery was made illegal and finally abolished after hundreds of years






Black History

is London's History

2023 LISTINGS


We invite Londoners to celebrate the important legacy of London’s Black communities and join the many events, performances and exhibitions happening across our Capital city.


Not in London?

You'll be able to do a search using a dropdown box to find out what's going in your area, and regions across England.


Go Click•••► Check Black History Month Org - BHM Events extending outside of the Capital!




 PLAYLIST


 International Slavery Remembrance Day

 

 Royal Museums Greenwich

 31 songs 2 hr 7 min


The Bank of England has removed ten paintings and busts of seven governors and directors with known connections to the slave trade and hired a researcher on slavery for its museum.


Eight oil paintings and two busts were taken down from view after a year-long internal review.


Formerly on view at the Bank of England’s headquarters in London, The Bank of England have now removed portraits and busts depicted people including: James Bateman and Sir Gilbert Heathcote.


In total, eight oil paintings and two busts were taken down at the bank’s headquarters and adjacent museum in London. The move was the result of a year-long review commenced last summer, in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests that erupted across Europe and North America


This was following the Black Lives Matter protests last year 2020, the bank


Founded in 1694 to act as banker to the government announced plans to review its art collection.


27th Aug 2021 a spokeswoman said: “The review is now complete and artworks depicting former governors and directors, where we have been able to establish links to the slave trade, have been removed from display.

Life Aboard a Slave Ship

| History


From approximately 1525 to 1866, 12.5 million Africans were forcibly transported across the Middle Passage to serve as slaves in the New World. Life aboard slave ships was agonizing and dangerous; nearly 2 million slaves would perish on their journey across the Atlantic. #HistoryChannel

Unravelling The Dark Reality of Britain's Slave Trade

Professor Alice Roberts comes to Bristol and examines the truth behind Britain's slave trade. Subscribe to Channel 4 Documentary: https://bit.ly/2IzNJyi Watch the FULL series on All 4: https://bit.ly/2q7Qema #BritainsMostHistoricTowns #Channel4Documentary #Channel4 #Documentary


#Roots

Roots: The Middle Passage

| History


Historians talk about our changing understanding of the horrors of the slave trade's "middle passage" from Africa to America. #Roots

Britain's Slave Trade

Britain’s place in the history of slavery has been as the country that abolished the international slave trade. Britain’s Slave Trade reveals the shameful truth behind this liberal facade, showing how the economic, social and cultural life of Britain would have been unrecognisable without slavery. Britain’s Slave Trade explains how a middling European power transformed itself into the ruler of the waves, tracing the impact this had on the British way of life and taking in the Industrial Revolution, the beginnings of Empire and the birth of modern racism along the way. Since slavery was abolished they has been unearthed and startling evidence showing how many families that think of them as ‘pure’ English stock are in fact descended from slave ancestors.




Ex Slaves talk about Slavery in the USA


A story done by ABC News in 1999 about slavery as told by people who were slaves. Recorded in the 1940's.


Iron, Gold, Silver & Slaves

(Britain's Slave Trade Documentary) | Timeline


Unravelling The Dark Reality of Britain's Slave Trade


Professor Alice Roberts comes to Bristol and examines the truth behind Britain's slave trade.


Toppled Statue Coulston - Bristol 2020

Slavery in Britain: What don't we know?

The slave trade was vital to the economy of the British Empire for hundreds of years. We ask historians and experts to explain Britain's past - and how its legacy is still felt today.



Roots: A History Revealed

-The Slave Auction

| History

A one hour, unblinking and fact-filled look at the real history of slavery, as revealed in Roots. This documentary features leading historians unpacking the history behind Africa at the time of Kunte Kinte and the Middle Passage, slavery on plantations. HISTORY®, now reaching more than 98 million homes, is the leading destination for award-winning original series and specials that connect viewers with history in an informative, immersive, and entertaining manner across all platforms. The network’s all-original programming slate features a roster of hit series, epic miniseries, and scripted event programming. Visit us at HISTORY.com for more info.


X thread 2022❤️