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Posted: Monday, August 1, 2022. 10:06 PM CST.
By Benjamin Flowers: For those who don’t know the history, Emancipation Day 2022 meant nothing more than a public and bank holiday. But for those who are, the day represents the realization of the hopes and dreams of millions of men, women and children of African descent; another step towards freedom.
Between the 16th and 19th centuries, European nations, beginning with Portugal and spreading to Britain, Spain, and France, bought and forcibly removed Africans from their homelands, transported them in inhumane conditions to be sold as property, and endured a life of torture, rape, murder. and forced labor.
Belize, despite not having the level of evidence of intensive slavery as some other Caribbean countries, was not immune to the atrocities of slavery. Slaves were brought to the settlement to serve as laborers in the lumber and mahogany industries, which laid the foundation for the country that exists today.
The Department of Archives and Records confirms that there was a slave breeding house where slave women and girls would be impregnated so that the offspring could be sold in the US. This house existed in the Yabourough area, although changes in the landscape make it difficult to identify the actual site of the building.
Evidence of subhuman wages paid to ex-slaves in British Honduras was documented and occurred until self-government and even independence.
While Britain and the United States ended the slave trade in 1807 and abolished it in 1833, the system of slavery still existed until July 31, 1838. But once the bell rang on August 1, those who were slaves were declared legally free. True freedom, however, was still beyond their reach as systems of economic oppression, and the mental effects of the perverted versions of the Christian faith used to justify the atrocities committed during slavery would linger for centuries afterward.
But the monumental importance of being legally free is a reason to celebrate. There were a number of events, such as lectures, the launch of a video series, and a memorial service at the church on the night of July 31st, all aimed at raising awareness of the hardships endured by the ancestors of Belize’s Kriol population.
The National Institute of Culture and History, the National Creole Council and other entities within Belize’s cultural landscape gathered in front of Yarborough Field this morning to officially mark Emancipation Day 2022, Belize’s second such holiday.
During the ceremony, the National Kriol Council pledged to work with Kriol communities across the country to chart a way forward for Kriol as a people. According to the 2010 Population and Housing Census, about 30 percent of Belizeans identify as Kriol. These figures are expected to be updated sometime next year as the 2022 census is currently underway.
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