August 23 was designated by UNESCO as the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition to memorialize the transatlantic slave trade and the date of the Haiti Uprising in 1791, which opened the door to freedom.
Watch this interview with Dread Scott, a revolutionary artist who works to propel history forward with his art, as he discusses his Slave Reenactment Project. Dread Scott's aim is to provide a new way to look at history and relate history to the present. In this case, the reenactment is of the largest rebellion of enslaved people in the US which took place in Louisiana in 1811.
On the night of August 22 to August 23, 1791, there was a slave uprising in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic). The battle lasted 13 years, ending with the independent state of Haiti.
(Grades 3-6) "In the late 1930s, Lawrence painted a series of pictures that documented the oppression of the Haitian people at the end of the 18th century and their eventual liberation in 1804."
Audio / Call to Action
The French Abolitionist and Feminist who spoke out about the Slave Trade
Teachers: Visit the MY HERO lesson plan the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition.
Olympe de Gouges was a French playwright, feminist and abolitionist. She was an outspoken critic of the slave trade in the French colonies.
English Abolitionists who fought to pass the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act of 1807
William Wilberforce was a leader of the English abolitionist movement that fought for the abolition of slavery until the passage of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in 1807.
The film "Juneteenth" celebrates the emancipation of slaves residing in Texas.
A school essay changed his life: Thomas Clarkson devoted his life to abolishing the slave trade and saw the passage of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act of 1807 and Slavery Abolition Act in 1833.
Across the Atlantic: American Abolitionists
Frederick Douglass had a remarkable life: He was born into slavery but became a statesman. He was a powerful advocate for the Abolitionist and Suffragist movement and famous orator and writer.
Frances Ellen Watkins was a prolific author and poet who devoted her life to speaking out against slavery.
An abolitionist and Union supporter, Mary Richards Bowser became a black spy in the Confederate White House of Jefferson Davis.
Henry "Box" Brown mailed himself in a box to the office of abolitionist Quakers in the north to escape slavery. The trip took 27 hours.
Ellen and William Craft, slaves in Macon, Georgia, disguised themselves as a white male plantation owner and his servant to escape. In 1860 they wrote Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom; Or, The Escape of William and Ellen Craft from Slavery.
Abolitionists from American History Celebrated by Artists
Robert Shetterly created the Amricans Who Tell the Truth portrait project and painted Sojourner Truth as part of his 200+ oil paintings.
Frederick Douglass is celebrated for his strength, courage and intelligence in this portrait by Robert Shetterly.
Harriet Tubman's portrait by Robert Shetterly from Americans Who Tell the Truth depicts her as a formidable opponent of slavery and an advocate to protect the enslaved
Memorializing the Slave Trade
Trey Carlisle, a reporter for MY HERO, brings the viewer up close to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in this short film.
UNESCO
International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and it Abolition
Quakers in the World
Quakers and the abolition of the slave trade
International Slavery Museum, Liverpool UK
The International Slavery Museum opened in August 2007 and by December 2016 had welcomed more than 3.8 million visitors. It is the only museum of its kind to look at aspects of historical and contemporary slavery as well as being an international hub for resources on human rights issues.
Canadian Museum of History
Slavery in New France (Canada) - slavery of black and indigenous peoples
Stories from the Christian Science Monitor
Bryan Stevenson and Equal Justice Initiative litigate cases for the unjustly imprisoned and work to reform the justice system. (4:47 minutes)
Short films curated by MY HERO International Film Festival director Wendy Milette. |
Hero Stories curated by MY HERO General Editors Deborah Neff and Abigail Richardson. |
Organizer created on 8/24/2013 7:57:31 AM by Becky Miller
Last edited 7/14/2023 7:57:52 AM by Abigail Richardson