New York, United States - August 23, 2024

Officials from the United Nations (U.N.), on the occasion of the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition on Friday, called for honoring both the victims and the heroic figures who resisted the transatlantic slave trade, emphasizing the importance of reflecting on the trade's historical impact and the ongoing fight for equality and justice.

Dennis Francis, President of the 78th United Nations General Assembly, posted a statement on social media urging people to remember the courageous individuals who challenged the brutalities of the transatlantic slave trade, acknowledging their role in forever altering the course of history.

On the same day, Audrey Azoulay, director-general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), stressed the importance of commemorating both the victims and the freedom fighters of the past. She called for remembrance to inspire future generations to build just societies.

The U.N.'s International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, observed annually across the globe on Aug 23, commemorates the tragedy of the transatlantic slave trade during the colonial era.

The annual observance is led by the UNESCO.

First observed in Haiti on Aug 23, 1998, and in Goree Island in Senegal, on Aug 23, 1999, the date marks the uprising of self-liberated enslaved people on Saint Domingue (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic) against French colonial rule on the night of Aug 22 to 23, 1791, which was pivotal in ending the transatlantic slave trade.

Shotlist:
New York, NY, USA - Aug 23, 2024:
FILE: U.N. Headquarters, New York City - Date Unknown
1. U.N. headquarters, buildings, East River;
2. U.N. flag;
3. U.N. logo;
U.N. Headquarters, New York City - Aug 23, 2024
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Monica Grayley, spokeswoman for the President of the General Assembly:
"Mr. Francis also stressed that their struggle reminds us of the enduring power of the human spirit in the face of oppression. The PGA invited all to honor the legacy by continuing the fight for equality and justice, ensuring that such atrocities are never repeated.";
FILE: U.N. Headquarters, New York City - Date Unknown
5. U.N. logo;
FILE: U.N. Headquarters, New York City - July 24, 2024
6. U.N. flag;
7. United Nations (U.N.) headquarters, national flags.

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