[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 37 (Monday, March 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E460]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   BICENTENNIAL OF THE BRITISH ABOLITION OF THE TRANS-ATLANTIC SLAVE 
                         TRADE--ACKNOWLEDGMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 5, 2007

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the 
Bicentennial of the British Abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade 
and enter into the record an article from the Africana Heritage 
newsletter, published by the Schomburg Center for the Research in Black 
History and Culture entitled ``Bicentennial of the American and British 
Abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. ``
  On March 25, 1807, the British Parliament passed the Abolition of the 
Slave Trade Act. This act outlawed slave trading, granted authority to 
the British Royal Navy to search and seize ships, and also required 
payment for the freedom of slaves. This act also was a pivotal piece of 
legislation and eventually contributed to the full abolishment of 
slavery in Great Britain and in the United States.
  This bicentennial offers an opportunity, for people around the world, 
to remember the historical significance of the slave trade and slavery 
as a whole. We must never forget the immeasurable human cost of slavery 
or the aftermath that still lingers today. Considerable progress has 
been made toward equality and to repair the damage caused by the 
British institution of slavery, but work still needs to be done in the 
area of race relations for people of African descent in the U.S. and 
abroad. The bicentennial provides us an opportunity to remember the 
history of our past while working toward equality today.
  In March of 2007, Great Britain will begin a year long commemoration 
of the bicentennial in several ways. Approximately $37.5 million has 
been allocated for projects. Specifically, the government is funding 
projects that involve education on the history of the transatlantic 
slave trade in schools and communities. The dedication of funding to 
educate people about the Trans-Atlantic slave trade is noteworthy. I 
applaud Great Britain for their efforts and look forward to the 
planning of similar events in the United States during the coming year.

    Bicentennial of the American and British Abolition of the Trans-
                          Atlantic Slave Trade

       Two hundred years ago, on March 3, 1807, President Thomas 
     Jefferson signed into act a bill approved by Congress the day 
     before ``to prohibit the importation of slaves into any port 
     or place within the jurisdiction of the United States.'' A 
     few weeks later, on the 25th, the British House of Lords 
     passed The Slave Trade Abolition Bill. In neither country did 
     new legislation signify the immediate end of the 
     international slave trade. Twenty years earlier, the 
     Constitution of the United States (article I, section 9) had 
     clearly spelled out that it could not be banned before 1808, 
     and it was not until January 1, 1808 that the American and 
     British acts went into effect.
       Nevertheless, the deportation of Africans continued: 
     legally to Brazil, and the French and Spanish colonies; and 
     illegally to the United States and the British West Indies. 
     Of the 12.5 million men, women, and children uprooted by the 
     trans-Atlantic slave trade--93 percent towards South America 
     and the Caribbean--3.5 million were transported between 1801 
     and 1867.
       Throughout 2007, the bicentennial of the abolition of the 
     international slave trade will be commemorated in Great 
     Britain--the largest slave trading country with more than 40 
     percent of the deportations--and Anglophone Caribbean 
     countries with exhibitions, conferences, and other 
     activities. About $37.5 million have been awarded in Great 
     Britain to various projects. The American commemoration will 
     take place in 2008.


       Major Manifestations of the Bicentennial in Great Britain:

     Bristol
       Between 1698 and 1807, Bristol sent 2,000 slave ships to 
     Africa. To commemorate the city's involvement in the slave 
     trade, The Bristol Industrial Museum will propose an 
     exhibition on the slave trade and its abolition. The British 
     Empire and Commonwealth Museum's exhibition ``Breaking the 
     Chains'' will open on February 15 and run for two years.
     Hull
       The Wilberforce House Museum and the Wilberforce Institute 
     will develop and update their slavery and abolition 
     collections. The University of Hull will organize a 
     conference, ``Slavery: Unfinished Business,'' on May 16-18.
     Liverpool
       The International Slavery Museum will open on August 23 in 
     the city that deported 1.5 million Africans in 5,000 voyages 
     (300 to North America), making it the first slave-trading 
     port in Europe.
     London
       The Museum of London and The Museum in Docklands will 
     present exhibitions on the role of London in the slave trade. 
     The city--second in Europe after Bristol--sent more than 
     2,700 slave ships to Africa.
       The Victoria and Albert Museum will have two exhibitions 
     starting on February 20, on the impact and legacy of slavery 
     on art.
     Manchester
       A partnership of 11 organizations will examine the 
     economic, cultural, and social effects of the slave trade on 
     Great Britain beyond the port cities in a wide-ranging 
     project called ``Revealing Histories.''
     Portsmouth
       The Royal Naval Museum will show an exhibition on the role 
     of the Royal Navy's Africa Squadron in the repression of the 
     transatlantic slave trade.
     Warwick
       A conference, ``Free at Last? Commemorating the 
     Bicentennial Anniversary of the Abolition of the British 
     Slave Trade,'' will take place from July 11 to 13.
     York
       The University of York will present a conference on April 
     12-14, ``Abolitions, 1807-2007: Ending the Slave Trade in the 
     Atlantic World.''
     Conference in Ghana
       From August 8th to the 12th, the Omohundro Institute of 
     Early American History and Culture (Virginia), UNESCO, the 
     Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History (Yale), the W. 
     E. B. Du Bois Institute (Harvard), the Reed Foundation, and 
     the Wilberforce Institute will convene an international 
     conference, ``The bloody Writing is for ever torn': Domestic 
     and International Consequences of the First Governmental 
     Efforts to Abolish the Atlantic Slave Trade.''




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