“Reparation is not just about money; it is not even mostly about money; in fact money is not even one per cent of what Reparation is about. Reparation is mostly about making repairs, self-made repairs, on ourselves; mental repairs, psychological repairs, cultural repairs, organisational repairs, social repairs, economic repairs, political repairs, educational repairs, repairs of every type that we need in order to recreate and sustain viable Black societies… More important than any monies to be received, more fundamental than any lands to be recovered, is the opportunity the Reparations campaign offers to us for the rehabilitation of Black people, by Black people, for Black people, opportunities for the rehabilitation of our minds, our material condition, our collective reputation, our cultures, our memories, our self respect, our religions, our political traditions and our family institutions; but first and foremost, for the rehabilitation of our minds.”
Chinweizu, Abuja, Nigeria, 27 April 1993 (delivered at the first Pan Afrikan Conference on Reparations)

The problems of Historical and Contemporary Enslavement and the question of Reparations are of utmost concern to Afrikan peoples on the continent and in the Diaspora. As an Afrikan-led heritage learning movement, ROV largely takes its inspiration from the cross-community mass mobilisations of anti-slavery abolitionist heroes and sheroes, especially those who are Afrikan such as Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, W.E.B Du Bois, Aimé Césaire, Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, who regarded the situations affecting Afrikan people as a matter for the whole of humanity to address.

The ROV position stems from consideration of Chinweizu’s paper delivered at the first Pan Afrikan Conference on Reparations on 27 April 1993, the Human Rights Watch position on Reparations, and the Programmes of Action of the World Conference against Racism in 2001.

ROV firmly believes that issues of Afrikan Enslavement in particular, and those of Historical and Contemporary Enslavement in general, concern everyone and that we need to understand the wrongs of the past within our present day context. Reparations should be made for the so-called slave trade, enslavement or other forms of racist practices because wrongs were committed, and because Afrikan people today, both on the continent and in the diaspora, are continuing to suffer the effects of the so-called slave trade, enslavement and other forms of racist practice. This can be seen by connecting the past practises of the so-called slave trade and enslavement to the continuing social, cultural, educational and economic marginalisation of communities and populations of Afrikans today all over the world.

By acknowledging this harm, and the continuing effects of past wrongs, it is then up to all of us, governments and civil society, to be prepared to take responsibility for seeking ways together to propose measures which can help to rectify these effects, thereby making amends for past injustices. There is a great deal of research which has been carried out around psychological, cultural, social, economic, political and educational impacts of the slave trade and slavery and finding ways of making practical use of this research is critical to moving forward on this issue. ROV is also linking its heritage learning work in relation to Reparations, to the promotion of cross community grassroots creativity in contributing to the formulation, implementation and monitoring of such relevant government policy frameworks as those on community empowerment, regeneration, cohesion, neighbourhood and civil renewal diversity, equal opportunities and human rights.

It is not governments alone that must take responsibility for wrongs of the past. However it is the responsibility of governments to acknowledge that these past wrongs have continuing effects on peoples’ lives today and to be prepared to engage with the wider community about ways to address these contemporary legacies.

Links to the Global Movement for Pan-Afrikan Reparations

The following are links to others working on Pan-Afrikan Reparations, or their specific Declarations and Positions.

N’COBRA
http://www.ncobra.com/

CURE (USA)
http://www.reparationsthecure.org/

Black Quest for Justice
http://www.ligali.org/nomoretalk/bqjc.htm

Human Rights Watch
http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/race/reparations.pdf

Pan Afrikan Reparations Coalition in Europe (PARCOE)