Triumphs, Struggles for Freedom, Equality Focus of ‘Remember Slavery’ Student Videoconference, at United Nations Headquarters, 27 April
The Department of Public Information will hold its tenth annual Remember Slavery global student videoconference on 27 April under the theme “Remember Slavery: Triumphs and Struggles for Freedom and Equality”.
The event, beginning at 9:30 a.m. and ending at 12 p.m., will link more than 500 high school students gathered at United Nations Headquarters in New York City to students in Mexico City, Mexico, and in Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania. Students will learn about the gains people of African descent have made since the period of the transatlantic slave trade and the challenges they have faced to achieve freedom and equality.
Christian Crouch, Associate Professor of History and Director of American Studies at Bard College, New York, will make a presentation on the abolition of slavery, milestones in the civil rights movement and current efforts to obtain justice and equality for people of African descent. Students will present the results of their own research on the subject and discuss their projects with students in Mexico and Tanzania. Also, conference participants will learn about the Ark of Return, the permanent memorial to and remembrance of the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, located at Headquarters. A musical performance will be presented by Jesse George and Alia Pierre. The United Nations information centres in Mexico City and Dar es Salaam coordinated the participation of students in the countries.
Special guest speakers include Hossam Younes, Project Architect at Rodney Leon Architects and a member of the design team for the Ark of Return; Mahammed Naguib Soomauroo, Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Mauritius to the United Nations, and Missouri Sherman-Peter, Permanent Observer for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to the United Nations. Kimberly Mann, Chief of Education Outreach, will moderate the event, which will be webcast live at: http://webtv.un.org.
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 in New York and around the world by 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 http://rememberslavery.un.org. For more information on the event, please contact Cathy Smith, Focal Point for the Remember Slavery Programme, at email: smith2@un.org.
Participating schools of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Associated Schools Project Network were encouraged to follow the webcast of the student conference. The Associated Schools Project Network encourages schools worldwide to educate students on issues related to specialized agency’s overarching goal of promoting peace and international understanding. For more information on the Network, please contact Sabine Detzel, International Coordinator, Associated Schools Project Network, at email: s.detzel@unesco.org. For information on the UNESCO Slave Route Project, please visit www.unesco.org/new/en/social-and-human-sciences/themes/slave-route/.
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