Note No. 6507

United Nations, Partners to Highlight Legacy of Africa-Descended People in Washington, D.C., 17-18 October

The legacy and contributions of people of African Descent will be the focus of two events jointly organized by the United Nations Department of Public Information and experts in the field, in Washington, D.C., on 17 and 18 October.  The initiative will be held under the mandate of the Department’s Remember Slavery Programme to expand its educational outreach to academics, students and civil psociety groups, including key institutions working to advance the rights of people of African Descent.

A moderated discussion titled “The Legacy and Contributions of People of African Descent” will be the first event, to be held in partnership with The George Washington University, Howard University, Association for the Study of African American Life and History, and Afrodiaspora Inc.  The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Tuesday, 17 October, at the Jack Morton Auditorium, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C.

Moderating the discussion will be Ben Vinson III, Dean of Columbian College of Arts and Sciences at The George Washington University, and panellists will include Omyma David, Focal Point of the United Nations Remember Slavery Programme; Mohamed Camara, Professor and Chair of the African Studies Department, Howard University; Sheila Walker, cultural anthropologist and filmmaker; and Sylvia Cyrus, Executive Director of Association for the Study of African American Life and History.

An exhibition produced by the United Nations and titled “Remember Slavery:  Recognition, Justice and Development” to mark the Programme’s tenth anniversary, will be on display from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.  That event is open to students and educators across the Washington, D.C., metro area.  Interested persons can register for the event at www.eventbrite.com/e/the-legacy-and-contributions-of-people-of-african-descent-tickets-37760112513.

The second event will be a premiere screening of the documentary film Familiar Faces/Unexpected Places:  A Global African Diaspora, followed by a moderated discussion on Wednesday, 18 October.  That event will be held in partnership with the Office of the Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) and Afrodiaspora, Inc., from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hall of the Americas, OAS Main Building in Washington, D.C.

Moderating the discussion will be Mauricio Rands, Secretary for Access to Rights and Equity of the OAS, and panellist will include Ms. Walker and Ms. David, as well as Ariana A. Curtis, Museum Curator of the National Museum of African American History and Culture/Smithsonian Institution, and Betilde Muñoz-Pogossian, Director of the Department of Social Inclusion in the OAS Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity.

The Remember Slavery exhibition will also be on display from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.  Members of the diplomatic community, civil society, educators and students from across the Washington, D.C., metro area are invited to attend.  Interested persons can register for the event at www.eventbrite.com/e/premiere-screening-tickets-38038737889.

The Remember Slavery Programme, managed by the Education Outreach Section of the Department of Public Information, was established by the General Assembly in 2007 to further remembrance of and learning about the causes, consequences, lessons and legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and slavery.  It also aims to raise awareness of the dangers of racism and prejudice today, through activities held around the world with the global network of United Nations information centres and educational materials produced throughout the year.  To learn more about the United Nations Remember Slavery programme, please visit www.rememberslavery.un.org.

For more information on these events, please contact Omyma David, Public Information Officer, United Nations, at tel.:  +1 917 376 6320, or email:  david17@un.org.

For information media. Not an official record.