The United Nations this week took a historic step in acknowledging the brutality of the transatlantic slave trade, formally recognizing it as the “gravest crime against humanity.” The resolution, passed Wednesday with 123 votes in favor, is a significant victory for African nations and the descendants of enslaved people worldwide, and opens the door to further discussions about reparations as a means of addressing the enduring legacy of slavery. While the vote itself isn’t legally binding, it carries immense symbolic weight and represents a growing international consensus on the need to confront this dark chapter of history.
The push for the resolution was spearheaded by Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama, who argued that acknowledging the unique horror of the slave trade is essential for healing and justice. “Let it be recorded that when history beckoned, we did what was right for the memory of millions who suffered the indignity of slavery,” Mahama said, according to a statement released by the UN. The resolution’s passage comes as a response to decades of advocacy from the African Union (AU) and the Caribbean Community (Caricom), who have long sought formal recognition of the lasting damage caused by centuries of enslavement.
A Divided Vote Reflects Complex Histories
The vote wasn’t unanimous. The United States, Israel, and Argentina voted against the resolution, while 52 nations, including the United Kingdom and many European Union members, abstained. The UK, while acknowledging the “untold harm and misery” inflicted by the slave trade, explained its abstention by stating it disagreed with the resolution’s fundamental propositions and its reluctance to establish a “hierarchy of historical atrocities.” James Kariuki, the UK chargé d’affaires to the UN, argued that “no single set of atrocities should be regarded as more or less significant than another,” a position that underscores the sensitivities surrounding historical accountability.
This stance has drawn criticism from within the UK itself. Bell Ribeiro-Addy, a British Member of Parliament, simultaneously presented a petition to the House of Commons calling for a formal state apology from the UK for its role in slavery and colonialism. The petition highlights the interconnectedness of historical injustices and contemporary challenges, arguing that “so many of the intersecting global challenges we now face are rooted in the legacies of enslavement and empire: from geopolitical instability to racism, inequality, underdevelopment and climate breakdown.”
The Scale of the Crime and the Push for Reparations
For over four centuries, an estimated 15 million Africans were forcibly transported across the Atlantic, enslaved and subjected to horrific conditions. Historians have documented how the wealth generated through this brutal system fueled the industrial revolution in Europe and the Americas. The sheer scale and systemic nature of the trade led 18th and 19th-century abolitionists to coin the term “crime against humanity” to describe it, a term now formally adopted by the UN.
Jasmine Mickens, a postgraduate student of history and government at Harvard University, emphasizes the deliberate mischaracterization of slavery as a “trade.” “When it’s framed as a trade, it distorts the reality,” she said. “It was not a consensual joint business enterprise.” This reframing, advocates argue, is crucial for understanding the profound and lasting impact of slavery on individuals, communities, and global systems.
Beyond Recognition: The Path to Reparatory Justice
The UN resolution specifically calls for reparations as “a concrete step towards remedying historical wrongs.” This call for reparations isn’t new. The African Union has been actively pursuing this issue for years, framing it not merely as financial compensation, but as a comprehensive effort to address the systemic inequalities created by slavery and colonialism. Kyeretwie Osei, the head of programmes of the economic, social and cultural council at the AU, explained that the resolution aims to achieve “political recognition at the highest level” for this historical period and to highlight its “world-breaking” impact, which he argues laid the foundation for subsequent atrocities.
Panashe Chigumadzi, a historian and rapporteur for the AU’s committee of experts on reparations, further clarifies the AU’s framework. She notes that it establishes the trafficking of enslaved Africans as the point at which the world transitioned from localized feudal systems to a modern, racially-capitalist system. This system, she argues, has “structurally transformed the fates of all peoples across the world through racialised regimes of labour, capital, property, territory and sovereignty that continue to determine relations of life and the land on which it is lived.”
The resolution comes at a time when the debate over reparations is gaining momentum, but also facing increased resistance, particularly from right-wing movements in the West. Recent reports suggest that the rise of these movements is complicating efforts to achieve reparatory justice.
What’s Next?
While the UN resolution is not legally enforceable, it’s expected to bolster the ongoing efforts to secure reparations and to promote a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of the transatlantic slave trade. The next key step will be to translate this political recognition into concrete action, including further research into the extent of the damage caused by slavery and the development of specific mechanisms for providing redress. The AU continues to lead this effort, working with Caribbean nations and other stakeholders to build a compelling case for reparatory justice. Ghana, in particular, is hosting a global reparations conference in July 2024 to further advance the discussion.
This resolution marks a crucial moment in the long struggle for acknowledgment and accountability. It’s a reminder that the legacies of slavery continue to shape our world today, and that confronting this history is essential for building a more just and equitable future. What are your thoughts on the UN resolution and the ongoing debate over reparations? Share your perspective in the comments below.
