The Circular CL/3494 of 29 July 1998 from the Director-General to Ministers of Culture invites all the Member States to organize events to mark 23 August each year. The UNESCO Executive Board at its 29th session, adopted Resolution 29 C/40 to designate the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition; The Day was first celebrated in a number of countries, in particular in Haiti (23 August 1998) and Goree in Senegal (23 August 1999). Cultural events and debates too were organized. The year 2001 saw the participation of the Mulhouse Textile Museum in France in the form of a workshop for fabrics called "Indiennes de Traite" (a type of calico) which served as currency for the exchange of slaves in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

FORUM: International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 2020. " Remember Slavery."

The Director-General of UNESCO invites the Ministers of Culture of all Member States to organize events every year on that date, involving the entire population of their country and in particular young people, educators, artists and intellectuals.

Statement by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the International Day for Remambrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 2020, August 23rd.

"The Slave trade is one of history’s most appalling manifestations of human brutality. Sadly, we continue to live it its shadow. We can only move forward by confronting the racist legacy of slavery together."

Antonio Gutteres.

Statement by Audrey Azoulay, Director General, Message on the occasion of the International Day for Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 2020, August 23rd.

On 23 August this year, we honour the memory of the men and women who, in SaintDomingue in 1791, revolted and paved the way for the end of slavery and dehumanization. We honour their memory and that of all the other victims of the slave trade and slavery, for whom they stand. The fight against trafficking and slavery is universal and ongoing. It is the reason for which UNESCO led the efforts to launch the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition. This special day acknowledges the pivotal struggle of those who, subjected to the denial of their very humanity, fought against the slave system. The slave trade is the product of a racist worldview. Established as a system of thought, this outlook has been the basis for profoundly unjust political, economic, and social practices today recognized as crimes against humanity. For a quarter century, UNESCO’s “Slave Route Project: Resistance, Liberty, Heritage” has sought to help governments, universities, the media and civil society to examine this tragic chapter in our history; to combat ignorance and the denial of a past which has nevertheless been extensively documented; and to raise awareness of this heritage in all its complexity. It is a project which is key to the International Decade for People of African Descent, inaugurated by the United Nations in 2015. The Slave Route Project aims to deconstruct the rhetorical and pseudo-scientific mechanisms which served to justify the slavery system. This rational approach lays the ground for a reconciling of memories and the fight against all modern forms of servitude and discrimination. Every day throughout the world, men and women of African descent continue to endure the effects of this grim legacy, sometimes paying with their lives. On this commemorative day, UNESCO reaffirms its support for Member States so that together we can devise new measures to put an end to racist discrimination. Once and for all, it is time to abolish human exploitation and to recognize the equal and unconditional dignity of each and every individual on Earth. Today, let us remember the victims and freedom fighters of the past so that they may inspire future generations to build just societies.

Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.

Previous commemorations

Statement by Audrey Azoulay, Director General, Message on the occasion of the International Day for Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 2019, August 23rd.

Message from Ms Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, on the occasion of International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition 2018, August 23rd.

Publications:

Legacies of slavery: a resource book for managers of sites and itineraries of memory.