Caribbean countries celebrate Emancipation Day this Thursday with several activities, which mark the end of slavery imposed for centuries by British colonialism in the region.
Territories such as Trinidad and Tobago, Bermuda, Barbados, Guyana and Jamaica, among others, will develop a program on this day to highlight the typical manifestations of their cultures, idiosyncrasies and the most relevant aspects of national history.
Other states such as Anguilla, Turks and Caicos Islands and the British Virgin Islands will commemorate the date next week with similar events in public spaces.
All activities will end with the usual message from the Government for the historic date. Emancipation Day was celebrated after the signing of the Act on August 1, 1833 that abolished slavery in all British colonies except the island of Saint Helena, located in the south Atlantic Ocean, and Ceylon, now Sri Lanka.
However, only Africans under six months of age were freed while the rest continued to serve their owners for years as apprentices in agriculture, the sugar industry, and manufacturing. Under this new form of vassalage, slaves were forced to work more than 40 hours a week, pay high taxes and rents for unhealthy housing conditions on the colonists' properties.
Coincidentally, on this same date in 1838, a group of Africans began a week of protests in Port of Spain, the current capital of Trinidad and Tobago, which spread throughout the region and forced the metropolis to abolish the apprentice system.
This event really ended slavery in the Caribbean and paved the way for many of the islands to become independent from London, which still maintains ties of domination over some territories and total control over others.
(Taken from Prensa Latina)
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