In 1791, on 23 August, the largest slave uprising took place on the island of São Domingo, present-day Haiti, which was then a French colony. This event, which marked the beginning of the eradication of slavery, was proposed to be celebrated annually at the 150th session of the Executive Board of UNESCO. The date of the start of the uprising became the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.
It would seem, why remember those times when slavery and the slave trade flourished in many countries of the world? But to this day it has not been eliminated on the planet, taking on a variety of forms. This phenomenon continues to occur both in the third world countries and in those that belong to the developed ones. UNESCO even introduced such a concept as the "new slave trade", which often falls victim to women and children, who are more often than other social groups subjected to violence and exploitation.
Every year this date becomes the occasion for the analysis of the current situation and the report of the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) devoted to this issue. The report invariably ends with a call to all countries to protect their citizens from the emergence of racism and forced labor. Members of the Executive Board of UNESCO on this day call to remember all the victims of the slave trade and those who, at the cost of their own lives, fought against it.
This date is celebrated in many countries of the world. The International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is also being held on the island of Gori, off the coast of another former French colony - Senegal. This island some three hundred years ago was the center of the transit of slaves from Africa to the United States of America. It was the largest market where human goods were traded. Every year, on 23 August, a ceremony is held here to commemorate the victims of this shameful phenomenon.
At the beginning of this century, a slave history museum was opened in Ohio, USA, the former center of the slave South. The museum is open all year round, but at the end of August, its workers organize new exhibitions and traveling exhibitions that tell about this page in the history of the United States, a country that today considers itself to be one of the most democratic.
The entire international community on this day remembers not only the glorious milestones of the struggle of slaves for their rights and human dignity. It also pays tribute to those progressive people in developed countries who, together or alone, protested against this shameful phenomenon, seeking its elimination.
