By Brian Lewis
Co-chair, SIGA Permanent Committee on Gender, Race, Inclusion & Diversity (GRID)
Ask yourself what meaningful–not performative–action or actions have European-dominated international sport federations taken to address their history as beneficiaries of the Transatlantic slave trade. For years, I have called on Commonwealth Sports to establish a reparations fund.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) itself can be called into question. There are sports leaders in the Caribbean who are either afraid or ashamed, as “sons and daughters of slaves,” to speak up. Being Black means staying back and staying silent.
Racism in global sport will not go away anytime soon for the simple reasons of cowardice and hypocrisy, or some sport leaders just aren’t interested; they just don’t care.
Today, March 25, is the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
According to the United Nations, this year’s theme, “Justice in Action,” calls on the global community to confront this history with honesty and acknowledge its enduring impact. Advancing dignity requires transforming the systems that perpetuate discrimination and ensuring that the rights of Afro-descendant communities are protected and upheld.
Let that settle and sink in.
The irony of this year’s theme is loud: Justice in Action. Lol (laugh out loud). Really? What and whose version of justice?
The Transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans was one of the gravest crimes in history. Millions of men, women, and children were violently taken from their homes, denied their humanity, and forced to endure generations of exploitation. The racist ideologies that justified this crime became embedded in institutions and societies, shaping inequalities that continue today.
Empowering futures requires expanding opportunities, strengthening participation, and supporting measures that promote repair, inclusion, and justice. By translating remembrance into action, we can help build a world where every person can live in equality, dignity, and hope.
While this International Day of Remembrance is a time for reflection, it is also a time for education. In 2006, the United Nations General Assembly, through Resolution 61/19, recognised that “the slave trade and slavery are among the worst violations of human rights in the history of humanity, bearing in mind particularly their scale and duration.” It designated March 25, 2007, as the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the trade, and the following year, Resolution 62/122 established March 25 as an annual day of remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, beginning in 2008. Source: United Nations.
Behaviour is driven by culture. Someone must be constantly focused on that culture. Anyone who has ever played sports understands the value of “culture setters.” Who is the culture setter in global sport fighting to end racism and racial injustices?
Justice in Action: Confronting History, Advancing Dignity, Empowering Futures. The double standard is glaring. Global sport must oppose slavery and human trafficking in all its forms and must not tolerate forced labour–neither within sport itself nor within its supply chains.
As George Santayana said: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
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