History of Slavery | 从政治性承认到呼唤正义

30年前，也就是1994年，联合国教科文组织“奴隶之路”项目（现更名为“被奴役人民之路”）的首要目标是“打破沉默”，即揭示这段人间惨剧的相关记忆。这场悲剧共导致1250万男子、妇女和儿童于16世纪至19世纪中期从非洲被迫流亡至美洲。据估计，当时共有100多万男女从东非海岸线和印度洋沿岸被运送至美洲。这一系列骇人听闻的数字以国际上对多份档案进行的分析为依据，除此之外，大概还有700万被俘获的非洲人死在了非洲内部的奴隶贸易路线上。

最初被贩卖的非洲人来自西非（塞内冈比亚和中非之间的一片区域）和东非，主要被运往巴西（奴隶贸易中，有40%被俘获的非洲人均被运往该国）和加勒比群岛（60%），还有一小部分被送入美国。奴隶制这种凭借暴力和统治剥削人类的制度成为最早的全球化经济。

无数非洲男女的被迫背井离乡，却成就了欧洲的糖、咖啡、靛蓝染料和棉花等商品的制造业，且在每个殖民社会都催生出一种社会等级制度。在这样的制度下，人类按不同的肤色和公民身份分为不同等级，并按种族定义不同的人口群体。每个人首先按其种族属性（例如是否为“白人”）来分级，其次才看其社会属性（例如是否富有）。“自由的白人奴隶主”相对于底层的“黑奴”而言享有崇高地位，造就了一种代代相传的结构性与象征性暴力体系。

然而，各国长期以来对这场悲剧都避而不谈。无论是在欧洲还是非洲，无论是在加勒比地区还是美国，无论是在南美洲或亚洲还是阿拉伯半岛国家，各国在建构国家身份的过程中，大多对此保持了沉默。但奴隶制在欧洲和美国的历史上的确发挥了重要作用，对于其财富的积累、意识形态的塑造和哲学原理的发展而言尤为如此。然而，如此重要性却并未得到充分认可，贩奴历史造成的遗留问题，也同样未得到应有的承认。

但是，对于在奴隶贸易历史重压下的人们来说，其因种族偏见、种族主义和歧视所蒙受的后果，是否就此在沉默中被埋葬？这样的沉默虽已绵延数百年，但人们承认贩奴历史的意愿（也即承认这段历史对当今社会产生的影响）正在逐步显现。形成如此格局的主要原因之一，是二战结束以来全球各国关系的转变。一方面，艾梅·塞泽尔（Aimé Césaire ，法属马提尼克岛人士）等加勒比殖民地的知识分子，以及阿利翁·迪奥普（Alioune Diop，塞内加尔人士）等非洲的知识分子，开始谴责欧洲在“自由”这一理念的基础上实行欧洲中心主义、采取种种矛盾做法，与此同时，奴隶制和殖民压迫却一直持续到非洲独立才结束。

“承认贩奴历史的意愿在二战后逐步显现”

另一方面，思维结构的这种彻底转变，再加上二战这场巨大浩劫产生的骇人后果，让人们对于真实体验各种历史性课题产生了浓厚兴趣。人们不再关注全球化的历史叙事，而是希望担当“历史的见证者”。虽然20世纪末已鲜少有人能够在加勒比地区直接见证奴隶制，但全球各地仍能够看到奴隶制带来的遗留问题。因此，在人人平等原则的激励下，唤醒对贩奴历史的记忆，已成为公众极为感兴趣的内容。个中目的是考虑相关历史因素，凭借这些因素解释当代社会为何仍然保有不平等的社会关系和地位——这便是纪念贩奴历史的路线图。

这条路线图因多个民间协会的施压以及种种政治事件催生的政府政策而成形。巴西和南美洲通过抗议反对举行“发现”美洲大陆纪念活动，以及多位非裔美国人在美遭谋杀案件所引发的反应，都是这场运动的例证。

道歉和赔偿

因此，贩奴历史的相关记忆，为制定所谓的纪念法案提供了正当理由；例如，法国和塞内加尔分别于2001年和2010年通过相关纪念法案，认定贩卖黑奴为反人类罪。2001年，联合国在南非德班举行反对种族主义世界大会，虽然未能在各国政府之间就要求正式道歉达成一致，但一些国家的政府已就这个问题采取了行动。2007年，英国为其在奴隶贸易中的推波助澜表示道歉，随后丹麦于2017年道歉，荷兰于2022年道歉，葡萄牙也于2023年道歉。整个欧洲都已经为“跨大西洋奴隶贸易给成千上百万男子、妇女和儿童造成的难以言喻的苦难”表达了歉意。

随着2000年以来全球力量平衡格局发生极大变化，各国也相继推出纪念奴隶制废除的节日。国际上，联合国将3月25日定为 “奴隶制和跨大西洋贩卖奴隶行为受害者国际纪念日”，联合国教科文组织则将8月23日定为“贩卖黑奴及其废除国际纪念日”（纪念1791年圣多明各的黑奴起义）。

这场运动在众多国家以倡议的形式得到充分体现，其中包括法国定于5月10日的奴隶贸易、奴隶制及其废除纪念日。巴西则规定了两个日期，一是5月13日，即伊莎贝尔（Isabel）公主废除巴西奴隶制的日期（但并未实际落实）；二是11月20日，即“国家黑人意识日”，也是曾经巴西最大逃亡黑奴营领导人祖比·多斯·帕尔马雷斯（Zumbi dos Palmares）逝世的周年纪念日。

荷兰规定每年的7月1日为“keti-koti”（苏里南语，意为“打破铁镣铐”），以纪念苏里南（前荷属圭亚那）和荷属安的列斯群岛奴隶制的终结。牙买加与特立尼达和多巴哥以及所有前英国殖民地一样，将8月1日定为“解放日”，庆祝奴隶制废除，同时也庆祝国家独立。毛里求斯则于2月1日在卡农角庆祝废除奴隶制。

政治性承认

以上所有官方活动都构成了政治性承认，但其社会影响却很难衡量。纪念活动并未考虑这段历史的继承人所承载的记忆，只是体现出历史在政治意义上的用途。

20世纪期间，非洲人流亡至美洲、被奴役、被强行运至大西洋对岸的经历在流落他乡的“黑人”之中发展成了创作的灵感源泉。关于奴隶制的记忆已转化为丰富的叙事、图像和遗产。联合国教科文组织《人类非物质文化遗产名录》（List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity）中的留尼汪玛洛亚音乐*（Maloya song），以及全球最古老宪法之一的马里《曼得宪章》*（Mandén Charter）等，都是这一记忆的见证。

博物馆也为这一进程做出了一定贡献。加纳海岸角城堡和埃尔米纳堡（曾经均为奴隶贸易堡）的博物馆再现了奴隶贸易这段历史。塞内加尔戈雷岛上的“奴隶堡”（House of Slaves）成为了一大朝圣之地，也象征着国际上对非洲人民在欧洲奴隶贸易中所遭受暴行的认识。达喀尔的黑人文明博物馆则为非洲呈现贩奴史提供了一种更趋全球化的方式。

上述的非洲历史遗迹都发出了一条强烈的讯息，即要坚定地放眼世界，尤其要面向全球各地的非裔人民讲述奴隶制历史。另一边，美国华盛顿特区的非裔美国人历史和文化国家博物馆则力求承认非裔美国人在美国国家建设中的重要性，旨在强调这个群体在整个奴隶制历史期间为国家所做的贡献，由此改写美国的历史。欧洲则有英国利物浦国际奴隶制博物馆，也是该洲首个以奴隶制为主题的博物馆。

呼唤正义

一些以纪念奴隶制废除为宗旨的协会曾指出，全球主要的纪念馆或纪念碑都以奴隶制的废除为核心而打造，例如纽约的“回归方舟”（Ark of Return）、法国南特的废除奴隶制纪念馆，以及阿姆斯特丹东部公园的国家奴隶制历史纪念碑。然而，与此同时，奴隶制历史造成的苦难与不公正却总是遭到忽视。与之相反的，则是定于2023年开放的毛里求斯路易港洲际奴隶制历史博物馆，该博物馆将力求展示被奴役人民的悲惨命运。

而问题就出在这里。具有象征意义、法律意义和教育意义的公共政策的确是有意义的，但无法解决种族主义和歧视问题。此类政策无法满足对正义和平等的渴望，相反，只会引发种种赔偿诉求，因为“奴隶制终结”是否属实的相关疑问仍亟待解答。

“具有象征意义的公共政策无法满足对正义和平等的渴望”

2013年9月，在加勒比共同体的支持下，加勒比国家与海地一道发起了一场针对丹麦、法国、荷兰、挪威、葡萄牙、西班牙、瑞典和英国的运动，将这些国家告上法庭，要求赔偿奴隶制和殖民造成的损失。在美国，随着弗格森市（2014—2015年）和夏洛茨维尔市（2017年）发生种族冲突，要求给予赔偿的呼声也以激进的方式重现，再次引燃了始于2012年的“黑人的命也是命”（Black Lives Matter）运动。

以上诉求的基本原则是获得（道德和司法意义上的）正义与平等待遇，这一原则体现了全球性的赔偿诉求。所得到的回应则各有不同。荷兰政府决定设立一个2亿欧元的基金，用于应对奴隶制在当代产生的影响。美国的大通曼哈顿银行、哈佛大学、哥伦比亚大学和霍华德大学等私营组织则选择为非洲后裔提供特定的助学金。

欧盟于2020年呼吁各国推出国家级方案，在其中考虑到殖民历史，并对结构性种族主义予以打击。改变在公共场所记录历史的方式也属于赔偿的范畴；变更含有奴隶贩子姓名的街道名称，拆除展示奴隶贩子形象的雕像，都属于改变历史书写方式的做法。赔偿这个词语虽然有着多重含义，但都有助于重新确立正义，打造一个更为平等的世界。

From political recognition to demands for justice

Long reduced to silence, the memory of the African slave trade began to emerge in the aftermath of the Second World War. Although it is now being recognized symbolically through memorial laws and national and international commemorations, its effects continue to be keenly felt. This can be seen in the manifestations of discrimination and racism that still affect Afro-descendants.

Myriam Cottias

“Breaking the silence”. Thirty years ago, in 1994, this was the main objective of UNESCO’s Slave Route programme, now known as Routes of Enslaved Peoples, namely to expose the memory of this human tragedy, which led to the deportation of 12.5 million men, women and children from Africa to the Americas between the 16th and mid-19th centuries. On the coasts of East Africa and the Indian Ocean, it has been estimated that over a million men and women were deported. In addition to this appalling figure, which is based on an international analysis of the archives, some seven million captives died on the internal slave trade routes in Africa. 

Originally coming from West Africa – in an area between Senegambia and Central Africa – and East Africa, they were deported mainly to Brazil (40 per cent of captives in the slave trade), to the Caribbean islands (60 per cent) and, to a lesser extent, to the United States. This system of human exploitation through violence and domination – slavery – was the first global economy. 

The deportation of African men and women enabled the production of commodities – sugar, coffee, indigo and cotton – for Europe, and created a social hierarchy in each colonial society, where colour and civil status were ranked, defining populations in racial terms. Each person was placed according to criteria in which the racial factor (more or less “white”) took precedence over the social factor (more or less wealthy). The “white-free-slave-owner” was placed in a position of superiority in relation to the “black-slave” at the bottom of the ladder, engendering a structural and symbolic violence that was passed down from generation to generation.

Silent tragedy

But for a long time this tragedy was kept quiet at the national level. Silence has largely prevailed in constructions of national identity – in Europe as in Africa, in the Caribbean as in the United States, in South America or Asia as in the countries of the Arab peninsula. Yet, slavery has played an important role in the history of Europe and the United States in particular, building their wealth, shaping their ideologies and influencing their philosophical principles. This importance has not been fully recognized however, nor have the legacies produced by the history of slavery. 

But is it possible to bury in silence the effects of racial prejudice, racism and discrimination endured by the people bearing the history of slavery? While this policy of silence has persisted for centuries, recognition of the memory of slavery – defined as the effects of the past on the present – is gradually emerging. One of the main reasons for this has been a change in global relations since the end of the Second World War. On the one hand, intellectuals from the Caribbean colonies, such as Aimé Césaire (Martinique, France), or from Africa, such as Alioune Diop (Senegal), began to denounce the Eurocentrism and contradictions of a Europe built on the notion of “Freedom”, while slavery and colonial oppression persisted up until African independence. 

“Recognition of the memory of slavery began to emerge in the aftermath of the Second World War”

On the other hand, this shake-up of thought structures, combined with the monstrosity of the Shoah, has stimulated an interest in the lived experiences of historical subjects. Rather than focusing on globalizing historical discourse, attention is being paid to “witnesses to history”. Although there are few direct witnesses to slavery in the Caribbean at the end of the twentieth century, its legacies remain just about everywhere in the world. In the name of the principles of universal equality, the memory of slavery has thus become a matter of public interest. The aim was to take into account the historical factors that explain why unequal social relations and positions are being maintained in contemporary societies – this is the roadmap for the remembrance of slavery.

It was established under pressure from citizens’ associations and government policies initiated by political events. The protests in Brazil and South America against the commemoration of the “discovery” of the Americas, and the reaction to the murders of African-Americans in the United States, are illustrations of this movement.

Apologies and reparations

The memory of slavery has thus justified the establishment of so-called memorial laws, such as those adopted in France in 2001 and in Senegal in 2010, which make slavery a crime against humanity. And while the 2001 World Conference against Racism in Durban (South Africa) failed to secure a consensus among governments in favour of an apology, several governments have moved on the issue. In 2007, the United Kingdom apologized for its role in the slave trade, followed by Denmark in 2017, the Netherlands in 2022 and Portugal in 2023. Europe, for its part, has apologized for the “untold suffering inflicted on millions of men, women and children as a result of the transatlantic slave trade”. 

As part of the shift in the balance of power that has taken place since 2000, dates commemorating the memory of slavery have been introduced. At international level, 25 March has become the United Nations International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, while 23 August is UNESCO’s International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition (in reference to the slave uprising in Santo Domingo in 1791). 

This movement has also been translated into numerous national initiatives, including the Journée des Mémoires de la Traite, de l’Esclavage et de leurs Abolitions (Day of Remembrance of the Slave Trade, Slavery and its Abolition) introduced on 10 May in France. In Brazil, two dates have been chosen: 13 May, the day on which Princess Isabel abolished slavery (although not effectively), and 20 November, the National Day of Black Consciousness, the anniversary of the death of Zumbi dos Palmares, leader of the largest Maroon village in Brazil. 

The Netherlands has instituted keti-koti (“broken irons” in Surinamese) every 1 July to commemorate the end of slavery in Suriname (formerly Dutch Guiana) and the Netherlands Antilles. In Jamaica, as in Trinidad and Tobago and all the former English colonies, Emancipation Day, on 1 August, celebrates the abolition of slavery, but also the independence of these countries. Mauritius celebrates abolition on 1 February at Pointe Canon. 

Political recognition

All these official events constitute political recognition, but it is nevertheless difficult to measure their social effects. Rather than taking into account the memories borne by the heirs of this history, commemoration expresses the political use made of the past.

Over the course of the 20th century, the deportation of Africans to the Americas, their enslavement and the movement of black people across the Atlantic developed into a creative experience within the “black” diaspora. The memory of slavery has been transformed into discourse, images and heritage. The inscription on UNESCO’s List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of the Maloya song* from Reunion and the Mandén Charter* (Mali), one of the oldest constitutions in the world, among others, bear witness to this. 

Museums have also contributed to this process. In Ghana, the museums of Cape Coast and Elmina, former slave-trading forts, evoke the issue of the slave trade. In Senegal, the House of Slaves on Gorée Island has become a place of pilgrimage and an international symbol of awareness of the atrocities suffered by Africans during the European slave trade, while the Museum of Black Civilizations in Dakar presents a more global approach to Africa. 

The message sent out by all these African sites is resolutely outward-looking, particularly towards the diasporas. The National Museum of African-American History and Culture in Washington D.C. (United States), on the other hand, seeks to recognize the importance of African-Americans in the construction of the American nation. The aim is to rewrite the country’s history by highlighting their contribution through slavery. In Europe, the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool (UK) was the first to open on the subject. 

Demands for justice

As some associations of people who bear the memory of slavery have pointed out, the main memorials have been organized around the abolition of slavery, such as the Arch of Return in New York, the Abolition Memorial in Nantes (France) and the National Slavery Monument in Amsterdam’s Oosterpark. Meanwhile, the suffering and injustice caused by the history of slavery are often overlooked. The Intercontinental Museum of Slavery in Port-Louis, Mauritius, due to open in 2023, seeks, on the contrary, to present the destinies of the enslaved.

And there lies the problem. Public policies in their symbolic, legislative and educational forms help but do not resolve the problems of racism and discrimination. They do not respond to demands for justice and equality, and on the contrary, they give rise to demands for reparations, because questions about the effectiveness of the “end of slavery” continue to be pressing.

“Symbolic forms of public policy fail to meet demands for justice and equality”

In September 2013, under the aegis of CARICOM (Caribbean Community), the Caribbean States, with Haiti, launched a campaign targeting Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. They took them to court, demanding reparation for the damage caused by slavery and colonization. In the United States, this demand re-emerged in a radical way during the racial clashes in Ferguson in 2014-2015 and Charlottesville in 2017, reactivating the Black Lives Matter movement, which began in 2012. 

Justice (in the ethical and judicial sense) and equal treatment, which form the principles of the demands, were put into perspective with a global demand for reparation. The responses have been varied. In the Netherlands, the government decided to set up a 200-million-euro fund to deal with the contemporary effects of slavery. In the United States, private organizations such as the Chase Manhattan Bank and Harvard, Columbia, and Howard universities, among others, have chosen to finance specific study grants for Afro-descendants.  

In 2020, the European Union called for the adoption of national plans to take account of the colonial past and combat structural racism. Changing the way in which history is recorded in public spaces is also a reparation issue. Changing the names of streets bearing the names of slave traders and removing statues depicting slavers are ways of changing the way history is written. Reparations, in all the multiple meanings of the term, help to re-establish justice for a more egalitarian world. 

*Note: 1. Maloya: https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/maloya-00249?RL=00249; 2. Mandén Charter: https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/manden-charter-proclaimed-in-kurukan-fuga-00290?RL=00290.

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