UN Permanent Memorial to honour slavery victims for unveiling Wednesday

The United Nations Permanent Memorial to Honour Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade is scheduled to be unveiled on United Nations ground in New York on March 25, 2015.

With the theme ‘Acknowledging the Tragedy; Considering the Legacy; Lest we forget’, the monument is being erected in an effort to acknowledge the tragedy of slavery, racial prejudice and the lingering consequences of the centuries-long enslavement of and trade in Africans supplied to the colonies of the Americas and beyond. It is expected be a striking feature of the United Nations Visitors Plaza outside the General Assembly Hall.

The Permanent Memorial is a reminder of the legacy of the slave trade. It will provide future generations with an understanding of the history and consequences of slavery and will serve as an educational tool to raise awareness about the current dangers of racism, prejudice and the lingering consequences that continue to impact the descendants of the victims today. It acknowledges one of the most horrific tragedies of modern history. It is a reminder of the heroic actions of the slaves, abolitionists and unsung heroes who acted in the face of grave danger and adversity.

The Memorial’s placement at United Nations Headquarters is a significant symbol of what the world body represents: the promotion and preservation of the dignity and worth of all human beings – principles that are central to its Charter.

The Permanent Memorial initiative also represents the partial fulfillment of paragraph 101 of the Durban Declaration, adopted as an outcome of the World conference against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance held under the auspices of the United Nations, in Durban, South Africa in 2001. The paragraph, inter alia, calls upon the international community to honour the memory of the victims of slavery.

This event is happening at a timely juncture as the United Nations has declared 2015-2024 as the International Decade for people of African Descent. According to the UN website:

“the international community is recognizing that people of African descent represent a distinct group whose human rights must be promoted and protected.”

The Permanent Memorial called ‘The Ark of Return’ was designed by Rodney Leon, an American architect of Haitian descent. He is also the architect and designer of the African Burial Ground National Monument in Manhattan. ‘The Ark of Return’ is a sacred space that is designed to psychologically and spiritually transport visitors to a place where acknowledgement, education, reflection and healing can take place. The Memorial’s exterior form is constructed in a fashion to reflect the image of a vessel or ship in acknowledgement of the millions of African people transported on slave ships to different parts of the world during the ‘Middle Passage’.

Triangular shaped gleaming white marble panels are supported by a stainless steel structural frame with the triangular patterns reminiscent of the triangular route of the slave trade which existed between the continents. The Ark of Return is a vessel which acts in a manner to undo the tragedy of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade in order to heal and move forward in a positive manner.

The project is funded through voluntary contributions from Member States, complemented by funding from foundations and private individuals. A Trust Fund account is administered by the Fund of the UN Office for Partnerships. Over 70 member States have supported the project to date.