21/01/2004
Liverpool to mark Slavery Remembrance Day
Liverpool is to become one of the first cities in Europe to make International Slavery Remembrance Day an official part of its cultural calendar.
The city council is expected to agree today to formally adopt 23 August - the International Day for the Slave Trade and its Abolition - as an annual civic occasion for the city.
Liverpool City Council, National Museums Liverpool and the city's black communities will work in partnership to develop a number of events for the date, including a Remembrance Day lecture, acts of libation - or cleansing, and events organised by the city's faith groups.
And Liverpool hopes to encourage the government and other councils to follow Liverpool's lead, and make August 23 a national slavery remembrance day.
The Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Ron Gould, said: "I hope International Slavery Remembrance Day will become a hugely important date for our city, and I hope other cities will follow Liverpool's example, and adopt this date to commemorate those who suffered through slavery."
August 23 was chosen by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as International Day for the Slave Trade and its Abolition, because on this date in 1791, African slaves on the island of Santa Domingo began the uprising that would play a crucial role in their liberation.
City Council Leader, Councillor Mike Storey, said: "The slave trade is a hugely important part of Liverpool's heritage and we are committed to raising awareness about it.
"By making International Day for the Slave Trade a permanent part of the city's cultural calendar we can make sure this part of Liverpool's history is never forgotten. It also gives us the opportunity to come together and celebrate the wonderful harmony that exists between the city's diverse ethnic groups."
The slave trade played a central role in the development of Liverpool as a city. In 1999, the city council acknowledged Liverpool's role in the slave trade and pledged a commitment to work closely with local communities to celebrate the city's multi-racial inheritance.
Past events have included a formal apology and community event in October 2000 and a slave trade CD Rom being distributed to schools and libraries across the city.
National Museums and Galleries Liverpool has been marking Slavery Remembrance Day since 1999, through exhibitions, slavery trails and educational programmes.
Garry Morris, of the Slavery Remembrance Day Project, said: "We are delighted National Museums and Galleries Liverpool, the city council and our communities are working together to establish International Day for the Slave Trade as an annual, civic event for the city.
"The Slavery Remembrance Day Project will allow us to continue developing a range of inclusive, educational events, which will reach out to the whole city, and help teach the lessons of equality and freedom. We are looking forward to 23 August becoming a special date for the people of Liverpool - and, hopefully, for cities throughout the UK."
Executive Member for Community, Equality and Values, Councillor Marilyn Fielding, said: "I'm delighted we will be recognising 23 August as Slavery Remembrance Day in Liverpool. The slave trade played an important part in the foundations of our vibrant, multi-cultural city, and it's vital we remember the victims of slavery, and their struggle for freedom."
ENDS
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