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UN backs resolution calling slave trade ‘gravest crime against humanity’ RFI Thu, March 26, 2026 at 4:08 AM EDT 2 min read A memorial sculpture by Sandrine Plante-Rougeol in Bordeaux, a historic slave-trading port, where the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade remains central to debates on recognition and reparations. (AFP - GEORGES GOBET)More The resolution – proposed by Ghana – was adopted to applause by a vote of 123 in favour. The United States, Israel and Argentina opposed the measure. There were 52 abstentions, including the UK and all 27 members of the EU. Ghana's President John Mahama, one of the African Union's most vocal supporters of slavery reparations, was at the UN headquarters in New York to support the vote. "Today, we come together in solemn solidarity to affirm truth and pursue a route to healing and reparative justice," said Mahama. "The adoption of this resolution serves as a safeguard against forgetting." Transatlantic cruise to turn spotlight on Brazil-Angola slavery past Despite being non-binding, the resolution goes beyond simple acknowledgment and asks nations involved in the slave trade to engage in restorative justice. It also highlights the legacy of slavery via "the persistence of racial discrimination and neo-colonialism" in today's society. "The transatlantic slave trade was a crime against humanity that struck at the core of personhood, broke up families, and devastated communities," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. "To justify the unjustifiable, slavery's proponents and beneficiaries constructed a racist ideology -- turning prejudice into a pseudoscience." During discussions over the resolution, US ambassador Dan Negrea said the text was highly problematic. "The US also does not recognise a legal right to reparations for historical wrongs that were not illegal under international law at the time they occurred." He added: "The US also strongly objects to the resolution's attempt to rank crimes against humanity in any type of hierarchy." The UK and EU countries put forth similar arguments while acknowledging the wrongs of slavery. "The resolution risks pitting historical tragedies against each other that should not be compared, except at the expense of the memory of the victims," said French representative Sylvain Fournel. Heroes who fought to abolish slavery honoured in Paris Pantheon expo For African Union officials, the language of the resolution is central to its purpose. Amma Adomaa Twum-Amoah, the AU’s Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Development, said clearly naming these events removes any lingering ambiguity about their nature. “It is to say that what was done to Africans was not a tragic accident of history, but the result of deliberate policies whose legacies structure today’s inequalities,” she said. “Justice begins with calling things by their proper names.” Beyond recognition, the resolution encourages countries historically involved in the slave trade to engage in processes of restorative justice. Ghana’s Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has been explicit about what that could entail. “The perpetrators of the transatlantic slave trade are known – the Europeans, the United States of America,” he told reporters. “We expect all of them to formally apologise to Africa and to all people of African descent.” He pointed to the return of looted cultural artefacts as one possible step, alongside continued efforts to dismantle structural racism and, potentially, financial compensation for affected communities.

I've been noticing a trend over the past decade of how so many AfroAmerican movies and television shows debut on Netflix as opposed to the major theaters and broadcasting channels now. This reminds me of how as a kid all of the major television networks like NBC, ABC, and CBS featured Black television shows and movies not only through out the day but also in primetime. Then starting around the mid-90s they started systematically taking Black television shows and movies and "relocating" them to networks like UPN and the CW channel. And then moved many of them off completely. It's getting to the point that every time I see an article about a new Black television show, I start skimming over the words until I see "Netflix" in the article because I know that's where I'll have to go if I want to see it. Yet at the same time Latinos have 2 major television networks (Univision and Telemundo) that Latinos from one end of the United States to the other can sit down and freely enjoy watching without passwords, fees, or subscriptions.

Lol...maybe AI will solve THAT problem, soon.

Come on now.... If you're looking for a young man....there are less expensive and time consuming ways to find one, than that.....lol.

Which is crazy because back in the 50s and 60s not only did every Black community have it's own paper but nearly every Black highschool had it's own Black newspaper. You didn't need a Scripts Howard back then. Black students were learning journalism (among other skills and trades) BEFORE they graduated from Highschool.

Yep. Most people don't know that this is where the word "slave" comes from....the Slavs Places like Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia and Slovenia....the slavic regions of Europe where the Arabs and Africans used to go and get slaves to bring back to the Middle East and North Africa. Called "Mamlukes" So.... Are you done hibernating? Like a bear or groundhog.....lol....you've decided to come outside and join us for the Spring?

See, and that's another issue. I know the internet is the largest form of media currently, however it's not wise to put too many of your eggs in one basket. Where I go at work, I walk into different departments and depending on which race/ethnic group dominates the environment....depends what you may hear, lol. But the thing I notice about departments dominated by Whites and Latinos....whether it's the office or the warehouse....they don't need the internet to listen to their music or programs. White people can still listen to their music or talk shows on the radio and so can Latinos! Racist conservative White men still can tune into AM RADIO stations from coast to coast and listen to politics and have their voices heard. They don't need a computer, phone, or wi-fi to communicate with eachother OR be communicated to. Again, all Latinos have to do if they want to listen to a Latino program is just turn on the radio and you'll have 3 or 4 stations they can listen to in Spanish Most Black folks have to use their phones to get online to pick up THEIR programs or listen to fresh music not downloaded on their phones My greater point is......... We can EXPAND our options without CANCELLING some of them out. We should be on the internet and social media...no doubt. But we should STILL keep and have our news papers, radio shows, and broadcast television stations to reach that older or less tech savy audience.

A LOT of people have been talking about this online Russia and China apparently support it.

ProfD Funny thing it's illegal for us to buy cartons of cigarettes & break them down to sell loosies. Well see, I didn't know that. I don't smoke or deal in cigarettes so I didn't know it was illegal for citizens TO do that. I guess that's why they have an ATF bureau. Easily. Same mentality that bums a ride & doesn't offer gas money or *borrows* household sh8t (sugar, cooking oil, flour, a few pieces of bread, etc.). That caused flashbacks from childhood. We had a woman who lived next door who would constantly ask for shit like that and we KNEW when she wanted something because she'd always first greet you buy saying, "hey neighbor"....lol. Any other time she'd either ignore you or give you a "Hey" or stale "How you doin'". But when she wanted some sugar or milk or eggs or wanted to use the vacuum cleaner..... "Hey Neighbor!"

Liquor and White women.....his two vices, lol.

Tempus is fugiting. And before we know it, election day will be here and that bad ol Donald Trump will be ousted and Democracy will be restored and gas prices and grocery bills will plummet and the Economy will skyrocket and everybody will be able to afford to be sick. Black folks? They can all come out of hiding .God will be in his heaven and all will be right in the world... Or - maybe not. Hope all you optimists have a Plan B. 🥴

I disagree. I think creativity is part of the human condition. We are all born with it. Sure there are degrees to individual levels of creativity. Different forms of creativity at different vary in value over time, but again we are all creative creatures— it is why we are not swinging from trees like our cousins. AI is already creative and this seemingly will only get better over time.