Special Address by the President of the General Assembly,
Mr. Dennis Francis,
at the New School on the transatlantic slave trade, its legacies and the pursuit of reparatory justice, as part of the 2024 Henry Cohen Lecture Series
23 April 2024
[As Delivered]
Professor Darrick Hamilton, Director – Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy,
Distinguished Faculty Members and Students,
Ladies and Gentlemen, Colleagues and Friends,
Let me express my profound appreciation for the kind invitation – extended to me by Professor Hamilton, on behalf of this esteemed Institute – to feature as part of the 2024 Henry Cohen Public Lecture Series.
The range of issues under examination by this lecture series is well aligned with the vision of our multilateral system and with the work of the United Nations itself.
I am, therefore, honoured to stand before you today to address a matter of profound significance, that impacts a significant portion of world population, both developed and Developing and which, for all practical purposes, in essence, constituted a critical dimension of the world system of capitalist development.
The transatlantic trade, its legacies and the imperative of reparatory justice – is a matter that even now, 400 years later resonates across generations and continents. The reality is that chattel slavery is a historical fact. Africans were abducted by Europeans, transported to the Americas, sold into slavery to provide unpaid labour to the plantation economy – cotton cultivation in the US, mostly, sugar cane cultivation in the Caribbean –and subjected to the worst forms of discrimination and racism imaginable.
While several colonial powers participated in these inhumane practices, my discussion today will focus primarily on the experience of British colonialism – in which the practice of chattel slavery reached its zenith, facilitated by Britain’s superior naval prowess and their expansive global presence.
It is important to note that, while this matter demands our utmost attention, understanding and action, it is not yet an item on the agenda of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
However, the existence of several related international commemorative events on the UN calendar – including the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade and the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination – indicate that the General Assembly is not oblivious to this issue; underscoring the relevance and timeliness of our meeting today, as the UN presses ahead to make the 2030 agenda for sustainable development a reality.
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
The transatlantic slave trade and chattel slavery – one of the darkest chapters in human history was not merely a 400-year long aberration, but a systematic assault on the fundamental rights of millions of people of African descent.
The harrowing statistics and images we know all too well – over 12 million people deported across the Atlantic – now the grave of millions; faces haunted by despair; families torn apart by deliberate colonial policy; backs broken and/ or scarred from the merciless whipping; and human beings reduced to mere commodities on the auction block – all while colonial powers amassed incalculable fortunes and wealth as part of the industrial revolution in Europe.
But what we don’t see in those images are the vestiges of this system of brutality – for it was a system, not mere interpersonal cruelty – that reverberate through time, shaping the world we inhabit today.
Reparations are, therefore, more than just a matter of financial compensation – they represent a moral imperative; an honest reckoning with the past to make amends to entire communities disadvantaged deliberately, not consequentially, in order to enrich and empower colonial Governments.
Correcting that injustice is therefore essential to building a just and equitable future.
Reparatory justice starts with historical justice. It starts with the truth. A pervasive dimension of African slavery was the notion that Africans were intrinsically inferior to their slave masters, members of the white plantocracy. Racism and discrimination therefore became an entrenched feature of slave society that have over the centuries led to the suppression from public view of major achievements and contributions made to civilization made by people of African descent.
The slave trade constituted a grievous violation of human rights – inflicting unspeakable suffering and lasting harm on the victims, on those who survived the Middle Passage and their descendants, as well as on the African continent itself.
By formally acknowledging this historical injustice – of denying millions their right to life and indeed their dignity – by offering apologies and engaging in truth-telling, we would, in effect, be honouring the memory of all those who suffered and died and pave the way for reconciliation and healing.
This is a good and rightful start – but it is just that: only a start.
When slavery was abolished by an Act of the British Parliament in 1830, the Parliament also approved the payment of compensation to slave owners for the financial losses they incurred as a consequence of having lost their “possessions”.
Hundreds of millions of pounds were therefore paid out to British capitalists in accordance with the legal principle of restitution. That principle remains valid to today and could be a starting point for the establishment of a Reparatory Justice Development Framework to the communities directly affected and impacted by chattel slavery.
I was emotionally moved when I recently toured the African Slave Burial Ground right here in downtown New York – joined by a group of cross-regional Ambassadors, Permanent Representatives and Observers at the United Nations.
Monuments like this serve as a poignant reminder that the evidence of historical injustices surround us – even in our streets – are vital in helping us to fill in the gaps in our understanding of our history and in preserving the memories, which help to ensure that future generations can learn important lessons from the past.
Another testament to the importance of truth-telling in reparatory justice is Dr. Charles Drew – an African American surgeon who pioneered blood plasma storage and established the United States’ first major blood bank during World War II. Despite his critical contributions, racial discrimination frequently overshadowed his achievements.
The Caribbean Community Ten Point Plan for Reparatory Justice – endorsed by the Heads of State and Government of the 15 Member States of the Caribbean Community in 2014 – provides a framework for action, forging a path toward equitable development and enhanced cooperation between the affected States and the broader international community.
Now, it is crucial that we focus on what unites us – and that we acknowledge the ways in which the past continues to shape our present and influence the future.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The economic legacy of the transatlantic slave trade is a glaring injustice, scale and scope of which remains poorly understood.
Indeed, slavery’s economic impact extends significantly further than the direct profits generated from the sale of enslaved individuals as commodities.
It laid the foundation for modern capitalism – contributing substantially to the growth of industries such as banking, insurance, manufacturing, and shipping – the profits of which generated massive economic growth in the United Kingdom and other metropolitan countries.
Sadly, that economic prosperity and the power it spawned came at a tremendous human and other cost to the enslaved, some of which have been carried forward to today.
The economic infrastructure of colonialism and slavery – built on exploited labour and resource extraction from former colonies – left in its trail a legacy of entrenched skewed global wealth and power disparities, thus perpetuating inequalities at all levels of today’s international structures and systems.
Reparations, therefore, hold the promise of addressing in part this pervasive economic inequality – serving as a mechanism to rectify past injustices and providing much-needed financial relief to communities and peoples that have been historically marginalized and disadvantaged.
But the impact of enslavement goes beyond mere numbers.
The inter-generational trauma caused by centuries of racism continues to undermine communities’ social, economic, psychological, and physical well-being – precisely because racism, by its pervasive nature, fosters discrimination across all spheres of one’s life, from housing and education to criminal justice and healthcare.
Globally, hypertension disproportionately affects black people, especially women, earlier and more severely than their white peers – a phenomenon researchers attribute to negative influences stemming from the multigenerational impacts of structural racism.
In the United States, Racial bias and cultural insensitivities– particularly in the medical field – contribute to higher mortality rates for people of colour compared to their white counterparts.
Consider the case of Barbados, from my own region, the Caribbean.
Historically reliant on sugar production since the slave era, the country faced economic challenges post-independence, when sugar prices plummeted. Instead of restructuring, Barbados was advised to promote an “eat what you grow” policy – leading to a surge in type 2 diabetes, earning the country the derogatory title of ‘amputation capital of the world.’
Recognizing and addressing these disparities – also with a gender-sensitive perspective – would go a long way for healing and reconciliation processes.
As we look towards to building our shared future – together as a global community – the call to launch a second International Decade for People of African Descent from 2025 to 2034 presents another opportunity to redouble our efforts.
We must institute a comprehensive reparative agenda – rooted in truth, and economic justice, in order to establish the basis for genuine reconciliation.
This will require a fully participatory process – one that puts the voices and experiences of the victims and affected communities at its centre.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
As I conclude, let me assure you that – as President of the General Assembly – I am committed to advancing these efforts.
As part of my contribution to elevating the issue of reparatory justice within intergovernmental platforms, I recently held the first informal morning Gayap Dialogue (it is a term that dates back hundreds of years, centuries – an Amerindian term, the indigenous people of the Caribbean – and the term means “many hands make light work”) – involving a small cross-regional group of Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives, to reflect on this sensitive issue and to explore probable ways to advance the discussion.
Building on the encouraging outcome of that dialogue, I remain steadfast in my efforts for the remainder of my tenure – so that my legacy is to have fostered a space for candid discussions on this important matter.
The question of reparatory justice is about more than addressing historical injustices.
It is also about accountability and the need for society as a whole to cleanse itself of the life-changing wrongs committed in the past and still committed today against people of African descent – racism, bigotry and systemic discrimination.
It is about building a future that is truly equitable and just for all.
By acknowledging the legacies of slavery – and its links to colonialism and racism – we commit to truth, justice, and reconciliation for a better, more sustainable world for everyone, everywhere.
A world that awaits your creation.
I thank you.
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