Actor Djimon Hounsou, and Rodney Leon, Haitian-American architect and designer of the Ark of Return
Members of the United States Congressional Black Caucus visit the Ark of Return at UN Headquarters. With them were Djimon Hounsou, Actor and Producer, and Rodney Leon, Haitian-American architect and designer of the Ark of Return today at the UN Headquarters in New York.
Photo: Luiz Rampelotto/EuropaNewswire
United Nations, December 02, 2019
Members of the US Congressional Black Caucus were joined by Benin’s actor Djimon Hounsou today at the UN’s Ark of Return memorial to reflect on the transatlantic slave trade’s cruel history and legacies.
US Congressional Black Caucus delegation is in New York on a two-day learning trip to UN Headquarters, hosted by the United Nations Foundation.
“This year, 2019, marks the 400 years anniversary of the transatlantic slave trade,” said Djimon Hounsou a two-time Academy Award-nominated actor for his work in Ed Zwick’s Blood Diamond and Jim Sheridan’s In America. “The Ark of Return behind me by the Haitian-American Rodney Leon pays tribute to this fact and makes us reflect on this infamous era of our history – to remember what was taken from Africa and what can it be given back,” he said.
Hounsou also announced an international cultural and sports event at the end of 2020 which will take place in Benin’s “Gate of No Return” memorial from where thousands of Africans were taken into slavery.
“My dream for the “Gate of No Return” and the marathon and festival is to create an international symbol of triumph over slavery and to heal the wounds that slavery left behind,” said Hounsou. “We will champion a visual connection between the countries of the African diaspora and the motherland and celebrate pluralism that we are all one people.”
The Ark of Return, by Haitian-American architect Rodney Leon, was unveiled on 25 March 2015, which marks the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The memorial, located on the United Nations Visitors Plaza in New York, inviting visitors to contemplate the legacy of the slave trade and to fight against racism and prejudice today.
Source: UNTV, EuropaNewswire