by Grenada National Reparations Committee
Grenada National Reparations Committee (GNRC) commissioners are appalled but not surprised by a recent revelation by researchers in the United Kingdom that in the early 1770s, the Bank of England acquired and subsequently owned 599 enslaved people on the island of Grenada.
The 599 Africans were enslaved at plantations located in Bacolet and Chemin here in Grenada. In 1790, the bank sold the two plantations to a Member of Parliament, MP Andrew Bailey for the equivalent of £15 million or EC$52million in today’s money.
According to an article published this week in The Guardian newspaper — this shocking revelation is one outcome of a research project “led by Michael Bennett, a specialist in the history of early modern Britain and Caribbean slavery, and volunteers from across the Bank of England’s ethnic minorities network.”
This new finding is part of an exhibition held at the Bank of England’s museum in London where the bank is currently headquartered.
Ambassador Arley Gill, Chairman of the Grenada National Reparations Committee said, “this exhibit at the Bank of England’s museum in London brings home to us now — if we were not aware of it before — the exploitation of Grenada as a colony of Great Britain and its institutions, and should intensify our urgent call-to-action to every Grenadian to join the fight for reparations and reparatory justice for the descendants of enslaved people here in Grenada.”
Throughout the Bank of England’s history, Governors Thomas Hankey (1851–1853), John Palmer (1830–1833), and Daniel Giles (1795–1797) held mortgages for enslaved people in Grenada. Specifically, Governors Hankey, Jr. and John Palmer collectively owned 772 enslaved people on this island.
For GNRC commissioners, this recent revelation heightens the need for more education and awareness among the Grenadian public regarding the important and urgent work that must be done to ensure that the descendants of Andrew Bailey and Thomas Hankey — and corporations such as the Bank of England acknowledge and repair the harms done by their inhumane and unjust actions — the buying and selling of human beings for profit — actions that resulted in the immense accumulation of wealth in the hands of a few British elites.
Despite popular claims here in Grenada — that slavery happened in the past and that Grenadians should “move on” from this issue and focus on more urgent issues — what this new exhibition reveals is that while many of us, descendants of enslaved people, are still struggling to recover from the very heavy yoke of slavery — individuals and institutions involved in the slave trade here in Grenada were generously rewarded and compensated, and their descendants are still benefiting from that wealth. For example, Governor Hankey was compensated an amount that is the equivalent to £14 million, that is, almost EC$50 million in today’s money for his “property.” Imagine for a brief moment, if each of the 599 enslaved individuals were compensated £1 million for their labour, each individual would have received what would be the equivalent of EC$3.5 million in today’s money. Wealth that they could have passed on to their descendants.
Recognising that reparations is not solely about money and compensation, the GNRC strongly believes that Grenadians of all walks of life should think carefully about the social, economic and political impacts of slavery — the legacy of slavery on our society — and the social and economic future of Grenada. “The time has come for the British government and the descendants of British elites who benefitted from the enslavement of our ancestors to own-up to this heinous crime against humanity — and do the right thing,” said Ambassador Gill.
GNRC
Hark! I hear the pounding feet of the British Chancellor of the Exchequer sprinting to the Bank of England to make payment for reparations!
(Or maybe not….)
Slavery ended hundreds of years ago…do we blame Egyptians for slavery ,what about Romans and Arabs and more importantly our African brothers who enslaved us and sold us to the white mam…let it go and move on
Mike your point is? What black on black crime have to do with paying up for past wrongs? You bigotry is stinking up this little forum.
The reality is, the UK. France, Spain, the US… NONE of their current governments or the descendents of the families that owned slaves 200 years ago are going to pay any reparations to anyone. That’s a simple fact of life. To not understand this and to continue to raise hope that poor people across this region might be in for a windfall is pure folly or severely disengenuous. All that will happen is that we will continue to drive the racial divide narrative and keep people mentally locked in the past. You’re free. Think free, act free, be free
This claim should not be made against The United Kingdom only. Remember the Spanish (Spain ) and also The French ( France )..
All of Europe owes the whole Caribbean. What about dutch ( Netherlands ) the danish ( Denmark ) owes all the people of the region. This should be share through the communities in Grenada.
I wonder if I can squeeze in a visit to Bank of England to see this Exhibit.
“Hits home”
LMBO.
Ain’t Arley got nothin’ useful to do???
Yours must be a very cruel mind. Did you get some of the blood money?
Surely you can see that Arley is wasting his time here? Nobody is gonna pay us reparations for things their ancestors did to our ancestors.
Just accept it, move on and stop being so miserable Jimmy.
This is an offensive comment and should not have been allowed.
just please dont give it to government — they too corrupt already
The people who say we should ‘move on’ have never travelled to the US or Europe, to experience the real effects of modern racism.
Great comment. Those who were advantaged by our ancestors pain and the systematic racism are happy to move on as they have made the road harder for us with devised systems.
If you have done that kind of traveling then based on a recent video….you are not entitled to an opinion…only your money is good …keep your opinion to yourself until they need your help
I not only have travelled the world but lived in numerous countries. What I see in America is an innercity black community that is quick to point the finger but anyone but themselves for their self inflicted problems. Look at the big US cities year end crime summaries. The black-on- black crimes, across the whole spectrum of reported crimes, is so far out of proportion to the actual percentage of the black population. Go into the country and really look at the huge percentage of poor people, of the full ethnic spectrum, who are not committing crimes and are appalled by the violence of the inner cities. Your comment is a slap in the face to all minorities who are poor, but manage to not commit crimes and blame everyone but themselves for their failures.
Slavery… it was nearly 9,000 years ago that slavery first appeared, in Mesopotamia 6800BC. In ancient Athens about 30% of the population were slaves. 1939 – 1945 Nazi Germany used slaves, up to 9 million as forced labor on farms and in factories. Imagine how much the Egyptians owe the Hebrews.
Many people are slaves today, to their jobs, in the struggle for the legal tender.