The Slave Route
The Slave Route
- Flogging on a slave (1863) © US National Archives
Ignorance or concealment of major historical events constitutes an obstacle to mutual understanding, reconciliation and cooperation among peoples. UNESCO has thus decided to break the silence surrounding the slave trade and slavery that have affected all continents and have caused the great upheavals that have shaped our modern societies.
The Slave Route Project, launched in Ouidah, Benin, in 1994, has three objectives, namely to:
- contribute to a better understanding of the causes, forms of operation, issues and consequences of slavery in the world (Africa, Europe, the Americas, the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean, Middle East and Asia);
- highlight the global transformations and cultural interactions that have resulted from this history; and
- contribute to a culture of peace by promoting reflection on cultural pluralism, intercultural dialogue and the construction of new identities and citizenships.
The project has played a significant role in securing recognition by the United Nations, at the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, held in Durban in 2001, of the slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity.
Drawing on the expertise of an International Scientific Committee, the project deals with various aspects of this human tragedy and is active in the following areas:
• support for scientific research through a network of international institutions and specialists;
• development of educational materials;
• collection and preservation of written archives and oral traditions;
• inventory and preservation of memorial sites and places;
• promotion of living cultures;
• promotion of diverse contributions from the African diaspora;
• promotion of standard-setting instruments for the suppression of slavery.
- 03-11-2010
Lancement de la 3e campagne de fouilles archéologiques sur l’île de Tromelin: Conférence de presse
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- 02-11-2010
Yvelines, exposition sur le thème "Combats pour une abolition, sur les pas de Victor Schoelcher"
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- 08-10-2010
Second Workshop on "Sites and Places of Memory of the Slave Route in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay"
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- 21-09-2010
International Seminar on "The Slave Route: Traces and Legacies of Slavery in the Americas"
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- 14-09-2010
Briefing on International Workshop "Traces and legacies of slavery in the Americas", 16 September 2010
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- 24-08-2010
Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations: Statement on the occasion of the Slavery Remembrance Day 2010
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- 24-08-2010
France : soutien à la Journée internationale du souvenir de la traite négrière et de son abolition
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- 23-08-2010
Message from Ms Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, on the occasion of the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, 23 August 2010
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- 05-07-2010
“The African-Turkish Relations: Past Routes, Reciprocal Emigration and Present Heritage”
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- 21-04-2010
"Participation and Contribution of Population of African Descent to the Independence of Mexico", International Essay Competicion
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- 26-03-2010
Permanent Memorial at the United Nations in Honour of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade
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- 24-03-2010
International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, 25th March
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- 24-03-2010
Senegal: Adoption of a law declaring slavery and slave trade crimes against humanity
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Colloque international: Enseigner les traites, les esclavages, leurs abolitions et leurs héritages. Questions sensibles, recherches actuelles
Paris - France- 18-05-2011 -
- 21-05-2011
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Conference: "Acknowledgement of The Slave Trade and Slavery as Crime against Humanity: Review and Prospects"
Paris - France- 11-05-2011 -
- 11-05-2011
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3e campagne de fouilles archéologiques sur l’île de Tromelin
Ile de Tromelin - France- 08-11-2010 -
- 09-12-2010
