UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has emphasized the need for reparations to address the enduring impact of the transatlantic slave trade, including systemic racism in modern society.
Guterres, marking the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, stated that slavery laid the groundwork for a discriminatory system rooted in white supremacy that persists today.
He called for reparatory justice frameworks to combat generations of exclusion and discrimination.
During the 15th to 19th centuries, at least 12.5 million Africans were forcibly transported, sold into slavery, and subjected to brutal labour on plantations in the Americas.
Guterres highlighted the enormous wealth amassed by those involved in the slave trade contrasted with the deprivation and suffering endured by the enslaved.
The lives of those subjected to slavery were marked by terror, including rape, violence, and humiliation. Guterres urged for healing, repair, and justice, emphasizing the goal of a world free from racism and discrimination.
UN General Assembly President Dennis Francis also underscored the dehumanizing experiences of millions during the middle passage, calling for accountability and reparations as vital steps toward true justice.
He emphasized the urgent need to address systemic racism and discrimination against people of African descent, historically and in contemporary society.
Francis stressed the responsibility of states, institutions, and individuals to acknowledge their roles in perpetuating injustice and to take meaningful action towards reparatory justice.
A UN report from September proposed financial reparations as a means to address the injustices of slavery.
