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Man in his 80s becomes first in France to formally apologise for family's slavery links
Pierre Guillon de Prince said his family transported about 4,500 enslaved Africans and urged France to move beyond symbolic gestures.
- On Saturday, 86-year-old Pierre Guillon de Prince issued what is believed to be France's first formal apology for his family's role in transatlantic slavery, expressing hope that others would follow.
- Guillon's ancestors, based in Nantes, were shipowners who transported around 4,500 enslaved Africans and owned Caribbean plantations, while France trafficked an estimated 1.3 million people historically.
- Alongside Dieudonne Boutrin, a descendant of enslaved people from Martinique, Guillon inaugurated an 18-metre replica ship mast in Nantes, calling it a "beacon of humanity" to help in "breaking the silence."
- While calls for reparations grow, France has never formally apologized for its role in slavery, and last month abstained from a United Nations resolution declaring slavery the "gravest crime against humanity."
- "Faced with the rise of racism in our society, I felt a responsibility not to let this past be erased," Guillon said, adding he wants to pass this family history to his grandchildren.
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"I can't leave this world without doing something to alleviate the pain of these people," said one of the promoters of the monument inaugurated in Nantes, which was the largest slave trade port in France.
·Portugal
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A man of 86 years of age has issued, on this occasion (18), what is believed to be the first formal request for excuses from some in Fran for the role of his family in the slave the transatlantic, saying that he expects others, including the government, to follow him. Read more (04/19/2026
·São Paulo, Brazil
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Total News Sources12
Leaning Left2Leaning Right4Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution45% Right
Bias Distribution
- 45% of the sources lean Right
45% Right
L 22%
C 33%
R 45%
Factuality
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