What Does the UN Declaration on the Slave Trade Mean for Western Legitimacy and the Global South?

What does the UN Declaration on the slave trade mean for Western legitimacy and the Global South?

On 25 March 2026, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly voted to recognise the Transatlantic Slave Trade as the ‘gravest crime against humanity’. It was a move that many hoped would increase legitimacy for reparations and justice for the descendants and the countries affected by the trafficking of 12 to 17 million African people to the Americas between 1502 and 1888. The resolution follows over three years of campaigning – particularly by Gha…

Ablakwa rejects “equal participation” claim in Slave Trade, calls for historical accuracy

By Hannah Dadzie Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has rejected claims that Africa was an equal participant in the transatlantic slave trade, describing the narrative as historically inaccurate and damaging to global justice efforts. Addressing the media in Accra, after the adoption of a landmark United Nations resolution on slavery, the Minister clarified that while some African intermediaries existed, they neither designed …

Saint Lucia supports UN resolution on slave trade as ‘gravest crime’

Saint Lucia was among 123 countries that supported a United Nations resolution declaring the transatlantic slave trade the “gravest crime against humanity”, a move Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre described as both necessary and timely. The resolution, proposed by Ghana, also urged UN member states to consider apologising for the slave trade and contributing to a reparations fund. Three countries – the United States, Israel and Argentina – voted …