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Justice Corps- Mural 2009 Nostrand:Herkemer - Bed-Stuy.jpg

Bed-Stuy Mural

In 2009, the NYC Justice Corps created a mural on Nostrand Avenue and Herkimer Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The NYC Justice Corps was created as part of the city’s strategy to combat poverty and has the mission to “develop the capacity of neighborhoods to address the reintegration challenges of their young adults re-entering from the criminal justice system, and to instil in those young adults a sense of civic responsibility and accountability.”The mural includes the faces of Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Harriet Tubman, Malcolm X, Shirley Chisholm, Bob Marley and Huey P. Newton, as well as the antislavery figures Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass.

Jonathan Matas, Tubman and Douglass, 295-299 E Green St, Ithaca, NY, 2010.jpg

Tubman and Douglass

In 2010 the Brooklyn-based muralist Jonathan Matas created a mural on Green Street in Ithaca under the Aurora Street Bridge. The 30 x 600 foot mural was approved by the Public Arts Commission and depicts Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman. “I think it’s a great introduction to our city,” Ithaca Planning and Development Director JoAnn Cornish said. But this was not the general consensus around the mural. The name, 'Comrade Tubman' given to Harriet Tubman on the mural has been a point of controversy for the local community. Tompkins County historian and author Carol Kammen observed: “The word comrade is historically inappropriate and anachronistic."

Anonymous, West 116th Street at 8th Ave, Harlem, NYC, 2007 [destroyed].jpg

If There is No Struggle

This mural was painted by an anonymous artist around 2007 and no longer exists, but is an important example of both the ephemeral and guerrilla nature of murals: some last for short periods of time on buildings and streets in communities. This particular mural was created in West Harlem and focused on the abolitionist Frederick Douglass. Borrowing his famous phrase from 1857, “If there is no struggle, there is no progress,” the muralist also adds a drumming figure to the centre of the mural. 

The Wilberforce Way.pdf

The Wilberforce Way

This sixty-mile walking trail was devised to commemorate the bicentenary by East Riding Local Strategic Partnership's Community Cohesion Forum and the Yorkshire and Humber Faiths Forum. The trail connects some of the important places in the life of the abolitionist William Wilberforce: it starts in Hull (where Wilberforce was born), connects with Pocklington in the East Riding of Yorkshire (where he attended school) and finishes at York (where he was declared MP for the County of Yorkshire).

freedom_festival_poster.pdf

Freedom Festival 2007

East Riding's Freedom Festival in 2007 commemorated the abolition of the slave trade and explored issues of modern day slavery through a multi-sensory performance featuring pupils from mainstream and special schools in the East Riding area. The play was in three parts - the transatlantic slave trade, emancipation and modern day slavery. Resources and activities from the project were then made available to schools interested in developing an inclusive arts project.

2007 York Castle Museum Period rooms4.jpg

Unfair Trade

York Castle Museum's Unfair Trade exhibition used the museum's collections to explore slavery from the viewpoint of ordinary people, and how consumption of slave-produced everyday commodities - sugar, tea, coffee, cocoa - contributed to the slave trade. It also looked at the part played by York in the abolition of the slave trade and slavery, with the many Quakers of the city supporting William Wilberforce and helping to finance his election campaign. The exhibition continued the focus on consumption into modern life by asking visitors to consider where the products they buy come from. York Castle Museum features a recreated Victorian street, Kirkgate, with its own newspaper, 'The Kirkgate Examiner'. A special edition was distributed to coincide with the exhibition.

Sites of Memory Thumb.png

Sites of Memory: The Slave Trade and Abolition

The Sites of Memory project was the first research by English Heritage (now Historic England) to provide an overview for the public of the buildings, memorials and grave sites across England that reflects the role of the slave trade in British history, and resistance to it. The project explored the history of Black people in Britain during the 18th and 19th centuries by exploring the stories behind the historic built environment of local streets, buildings and landmarks. The research (by historians Angelina Osborne and S. I. Martin, on behalf of English Heritage) also identified sites associated with the slave trade and plantation wealth, and with the abolitionists who campaigned for an end to slavery. English Heritage also made recommendations for new listings for historic sites that mark the Black presence.

2007 African Snow Poster Hull New Theatre.pdf

African Snow: Secrets of the Trade

In conjunction with York Theatre Royal, Riding Lights Theatre Company produced a new play written by Murray Watts, directed by Paul Burbridge, with original music by Nigerian musician Ben Okafor. African Snow: Secrets of the trade was originally commissioned by the Church Mission Society, an organisation founded in 1799 by representatives of the abolition movement, including William Wilberforce. The play sought to explore the ideas associated with antislavery and how they can be put to use in the modern day campaign for the end of slavery. Opening at York, the play went on to have a West End Transfer followed by a national tour. The main characters are John Newton, the converted slave-trader who later wrote 'Amazing Grace', and the former slave and abolitionist Olaudah Equiano. The play saw them confronting each other’s differing perspectives, creating a dialogue in which the audience could witness alternative views towards slavery. A 'snow' was a class of ship, commonly used for the transportation of slaves. 'The African' was the first slave ship on which John Newton sailed.

Slave Britain.pdf

Slave Britain: The 21st Century Trade in Human Lives

This photographic exhibition focused on human trafficking was produced by a partnership of Panos Pictures, Anti-Slavery International, Amnesty International, Eaves and UNICEF. Photographer Karen Robinson’s portraits and tales of women trafficked into prostitution explore the devastating impact on their lives. Also on display were David Rose's panoramic photographs of the ordinary British streets where the stories of modern-day slavery have been played out. The photographs were mounted on a cage-like structure which was specially designed for the exhibition at St Paul's Cathedral. The exhibition was also shown in Edinburgh, Hull and Warsaw, and in 2008, in York.

2007 Lascelles Slavery Archive.png

Lascelles Slavery Archive

The Lascelles Slavery Archive was a collaborative project between the Borthwick Institute for Archives and Harewood House Trust to conserve, preserve and make available records relating to slavery from the archives of the Lascelles family of Harewood House, Yorkshire. The project deals with a new discovery of papers relating to the family's fortune based on its estates in the West Indies. Key documents providing evidence for the acquisition of the family's wealth, once thought lost, were found in poor condition during an inventory of Harewood House. The Lascelles Slavery Archive is available through the Borthwick's searchrooms as an online resource, and represents an important section of the larger archive of the Lascelles family held by West Yorkshire Archive Service.

2007 University of York - Slavery and Anti-Slavery in the Modern World.pdf

Slavery and Anti-Slavery in the Modern World

The City of York lectures in 2007 examined the question: Did the abolition of the slave trade in 1807 really mark the beginning of the end of slavery in the modern world? The University of York organised the public lecture series, which discussed the meaning and legacy of 1807 and the persistence of human bondage and forced labour in the modern world. Speakers included the Right Reverend Dr Alastair Redfern (Bishop of Derby), Aidan McQuade (Director, Anti-Slavery International), Clare Short MP and Trevor Phillips (Commission for Equality and Human Rights).

2007 York Minster The Better Hour booklet.pdf

The Better Hour: A Bicentenary Service in Commemoration of William Wilberforce

A bicentenary service in commemoration of William Wilberforce and the passing of the 200th anniversary of the Abolition Act took place in February 2007 at York Minster. The service featured Pocklington School Choir, Transglobal Drummers and the Riding Lights Theatre Company (performing extracts of the play African Snow). Organisations associated with the service included Churches Together in England and the Set All Free project, and the Wilberforce Institute for the study of Slavery and Emancipation at the University of Hull