Descendant of slave trader dons yoke in an act of penitence
Andrew Hawkins from Plymouth, who believes he is a direct descendant of Elizabethan slave trader Sir John Hawkins, will don yokes and chains at this week's Roots International Festival in the Gambia to apologise for the actions of his famous ancestor.
He will be joining the Lifeline Expedition team, which has been journeying around the Atlantic world with their unique form of symbolic apology with whites wearing yokes and chains, while Africans and descendants of enslaved Africans accompany them. The Africans are also ready to apologise for selling their brothers and sisters to the European traders. This action is also a means of raising awareness of ongoing slavery and racism at the present time.
Sir John Hawkins is well-known for his part in the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1587, but it is less well known that he made slaving voyages with the support of Queen Elizabeth I between 1562 - 1568, sailing in ships such as The Jesus of Lubeck and The Grace of God.
The International Roots Festival commemorates the legendary Kunta Kinte who, according to the novel by Alex Haley, was captured at Juffureh in the Gambia and held in the slave fort on James Island until he was transported to Annapolis in Maryland US in London slave ship The Lord Ligonier. The Lifeline Expedition team aim to have representatives from the four European nations - Germany, Holland, France and England - who at different times held slaves in the fort. They will kneel and make an apology in the yokes and chains in the fort.
CHRISTIAN RESPONSE
The Lifeline Expedition is a series of reconciliation journeys, which constitute a Christian response to the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. The first Lifeline Expedition journey was the Jubilee 2000 Lifeline Walk in England. Since that time, journeys have taken place to France, Spain and Portugal, the US and the Caribbean. In Annapolis Maryland on September 29 2004, the Lifeline Expedition was in partnership with the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation to take part in a commemoration of Kunta Kinte's arrival there on September 29 1767 and will once again be in partnership with the foundation at the Roots Festival. Teams always consist of Africans, Africans of the Diaspora and white Europeans and Americans journeying together, which in itself is a sign of reconciliation. The team will also visit Ghana this year and the journey will end in England in 2007 for the 200th Anniversary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade.
White people walking as penitents in chains through former slave ports such as Nantes, Bordeaux, Seville, Lisbon and Charleston South Carolina created considerable interest. They walk not as symbolic slaves; instead, the chains and yokes are the walker's chosen symbols of their penitence. There has been wide media coverage, but most importantly, this prophetic action has been well received by descendants of enslaved Africans.
In France, "Enfin!" was the most common word used. Africans walking in the procession in attitudes of forgiveness point to the potential for real reconciliation in the future.
Leader of the Lifeline Expedition, David Pott said: "The Senegambia region is of course, a most important region as far as the slave trade and its legacy is concerned. The roots of the system are located here because it was the closest region of Africa to Europe where substantial numbers of Africans were taken captive.
"The legacy of slavery is still much in evidence in terms of the ongoing poverty in Africa today. I am thankful that in spite of centuries of European oppression, Africa is not bowed down and contributes so richly in our world today. In order to heal historical wounds we must go to the roots, so I am very glad that we are able to come and take part in this significant Roots International Festival. We pray that we will be able to make our contribution in bringing healing and reconciliation. That is why we are coming here."
Those poor misguided souls....... I have had Whites apologize to me for slavery, but really...... What is really the point when the next day, everyone is going back to their 'roles' in society.
P.C. Propagnada and other B.S like this is tearing our culture and Western Civilization apart. Ripe for the picking of Islamofacists and others who would destroy us.
Joined: 02 May 2006 {Posts: 363 } Location: Īle-de-France
Posted: Thu 22 Jun 2006 18:35 Post subject:
As trite as this may seem, if it brings people together and improves their feelings towards one another, I think it is a good thing. And how does this have anything to do with the war on terror? Like al-qaeda is saying, aha some brits are apoligizing for slavery, lets blow our selves up in their subways again!
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I have had Whites apologize to me for slavery, but really......