Reparations and Repatriation
The 2014 March
On, 1st August 2014, the day in 1834 that the Abolition of Slavery act came into force in the Caribbean, a Reparations March proceeded from Windrush Square, Brixton, to Parliament Square, delivering a petition to No.10 Downing Street on the way.
The march was the brainchild of Rastafari Movement UK, and attracted support from other Pan-African and reparation activists and organisations.
The march demonstrated a renewed autonomy of spirit for the Rastafari movement. Thousands of marchers stood in front of parliament to demand reparations for the wrongs of slavery and their ongoing negative effect. Since 2014, reparations marches have become a regular date in the Black British calendar.
Rastafari Movement UK Petition (2014)
THE UNDERSIGNED MAKE THE FOLLOWING HEARTFELT DECLARATION
The immoral and inhuman treatment inflicted on Afrikans by the money-making Europeans has never been addressed.
The racist mindset which fueled the Transatlantic Traffic in enslaved Afrikans from the 15th to the late 19th century has not been terminated.
The lack of accountability by those responsible confirms the ongoing racism which creates disproportionate detriment to the offspring of the millions of individuals that were stolen from Afrika.
Today the offspring of the stolen Afrikans encounter direct and indirect racial discrimination daily. This results in poverty, lack of education, unemployment, imprisonment and ill health.
The damage that continues to be inflicted on the continent of Afrika also needs to be addressed in a structured and effective manner.
The blood, sweat and tears of our Ancestors financed the economic base of the United Kingdom. Therefore it is just and fair that Reparation be made to their offspring.
Offspring that have been subjected to atrocious attempts to obliterate their Afrikan heritage, culture and identity. This has created a degree of self-hate and a lack of identity and self esteem.
Reparation must be a viable option for any Descendant of Afrikans captured, enslaved and financially exploited by the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations (UK) and their European counterparts.
RASTAFARI MOVEMENT UK
The immoral and inhuman treatment inflicted on Afrikans by the money-making Europeans has never been addressed.
The racist mindset which fueled the Transatlantic Traffic in enslaved Afrikans from the 15th to the late 19th century has not been terminated.
The lack of accountability by those responsible confirms the ongoing racism which creates disproportionate detriment to the offspring of the millions of individuals that were stolen from Afrika.
Today the offspring of the stolen Afrikans encounter direct and indirect racial discrimination daily. This results in poverty, lack of education, unemployment, imprisonment and ill health.
The damage that continues to be inflicted on the continent of Afrika also needs to be addressed in a structured and effective manner.
The blood, sweat and tears of our Ancestors financed the economic base of the United Kingdom. Therefore it is just and fair that Reparation be made to their offspring.
Offspring that have been subjected to atrocious attempts to obliterate their Afrikan heritage, culture and identity. This has created a degree of self-hate and a lack of identity and self esteem.
Reparation must be a viable option for any Descendant of Afrikans captured, enslaved and financially exploited by the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations (UK) and their European counterparts.
RASTAFARI MOVEMENT UK
The reparations agenda is ongoing. The British government have yet to acknowledge and take accountability for the crimes of African slavery and their ongoing consequences. Consider, for instance, the reply by the government to the 2014 march:
