Agreed Calendar March 23, 2022
RESOLUTION
21st Anniversary of the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade
WHEREAS, kidnapped from a continent, put in chains, given the name "Negro" because it means Black in Spanish, enslaved for 246 years by governmental laws as a moveable property thing called Chattel, handed down to the descendants of slaveowners, guaranteeing generational wealth for them, is different from coming from countries, by choice, like immigrants and refugees; and,
WHEREAS, on May 17, 1954 ended 88 years of Jim Crow Segregation Laws ruled unconstitutional because they only existed to keep the status of the Negro down and caused serious heart and mind damage to Negro Children, which is genocide by definition; and,
WHEREAS, on or about August 31, 2001, the United Nations voted Chattel Slavery a crime against humanity, recommended reparations for descendants and said the world community needed to honor the memory of these tragedies which they called "the greatest holocaust in the history of humankind;" and,
WHEREAS, on June 18, 2009, the United States Senate (the House of Representatives concurring) apologized to African Americans on behalf of the people in the United States for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors, who suffered under enslavement and Jim Crow Segregation Laws; and,
WHEREAS, they acknowledged the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of being forced into slavery and Jim Crow/genocide Laws that stripped them of their names and heritage; and,
WHEREAS, the Apology included former Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush, saying the vestiges still exists today; and,
WHEREAS, every year the United Nations' International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, on the 25th of March, offers an opportunity to honor and remember those who suffered and died at the hands of the brutal slave system and also aims at raising awareness about the dangers of racism and prejudice today; and,
WHEREAS, in order to more permanently honor the Victims of Chattel Slavery, a memorial has been erected at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, the unveiling took place on March 25, 2015; and,
WHEREAS, the memorial is called the "Ark of Return" to intimately experience three primary elements. The first element, Acknowledging the Tragedy, is a three dimensional map that depicts the global scale ofthe Transatlantic Slave Trade; and,
WHEREAS, the second element, Consider the Legacy, is a full scale human figure lying in front of a wall inscribed with images of the interior of a slave ship, that illustrates the extreme conditions under which millions of African People were transported during the Middle Passage; and,
WHEREAS, the third element, Lest We Forget is a triangular refectory pool where visitors can honor the memory of the millions of souls who were lost; and,
WHEREAS, 2015 to 2024, the United Nations designated a Decade to deal with the police killing of Black men and boys, massive school closings and disproportionate arrests, which they condemned and took testimonies from Chicago State University on January 25, 2016; and,
WHEREAS, all Chicagoans are urged to join the World Community in honoring the 21st Anniversary ofthe International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade by having their children discuss the violence they are exposed to, from hate speech to hijacking cars and write a letter of empathy to the Victims of Enslavement and share them with family members; now therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of Chicago, gathered together this 23rd day of March, 2022 that all Chicagoans, call on the United States Congress to pass legislation to nationally commemorate the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Chicago Board of Education and the Chicago Public Schools Students are hereby urged to commemorate the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this Resolution be presented to Mamadee, EvAngel YHWHnewBN on behalf of Advocates for Indigenous Native Black American Rights.