Widening the Field

African American History, African Diaspora, captured Africans, Middle Passage, slave ports, slave ships, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

Recently, the Project was contacted by Jonathan Highfield, Professor of Postcolonial Studies at the Rhode Island School of Design’s (RISD) Department of Literary Arts and Studies, to explore the possibility of collaboration with us on Middle Passage history.  Fifteen members of his class, Dialogue across the Diaspora, will travel to South Africa to assist students at the Centre for African Studies at the University of Cape Town to mount an Read More

From the Beginning

African American History, African Diaspora, captured Africans, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

So very often, people wish to mark the starting point to events in history. That is hard to do, almost impossible. As additional information surfaces, pinpointing the when and how of history becomes more intriguing, unwinding an almost unending thread that leaves us with more questions than answers. For instance, when were the first enslaved Africans brought by Europeans to what would eventually become the United States? Surprisingly, the answer Read More

Living Proof

African American History, African Diaspora, ancestors, captured Africans, descendants of slaves, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

During our travels, MPCPMP board members frequently have conversations with people of African descent who express deep regret that because of the human trade we do not know who our ancestors were. They make comparisons between those of us in the Diaspora, and European and Asian people who can state their specific heritage. It is a great disservice to our progenitors if we feel that because they are unknown and Read More

Spare Parts

African American History, African Diaspora, descendants of slaves, slavery

During a recent road trip to organize ancestral ceremonies in Virginia, two members of the project’s executive board were taken on a tour of Fredericksburg. While relating its history, the guide commented on the intentions of one 19th century couple, Mary and William Blackford, and their views of black people’s liberation. Profoundly affected by what she saw every day as a member of Fredericksburg’s slave holding society, Mary Blackford developed Read More

Skill and Talent

African American History, African Diaspora, Native Americans, slavery

In several posts over the past months, passing reference has been made to the fact that European explorers and conquerors were accompanied in the “New World” by Africans, many of whom were enslaved. Yet in most cases, until recently, people of African heritage were historical footnotes, if mentioned at all. For example, it is not an exaggeration to say that the white American explorers Lewis and Clark and Robert Peary Read More

Come a Long Way, but Still a Long Way to Go

African American History, slavery

Plantation:  A large farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semi-tropical land on which crops such as cotton, tobacco, sugar cane, rice, coffee, and/or indigo are cultivated by resident laborers.                         An original settlement in a new country; a colony  During 2012, as part of networking and research, board members of the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project visited three Read More

Now or Never

African American History, African Diaspora, African ethnic groups, American legal system, American politics, ancestors, descendants of slaves, slave ports, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

Recently, during a conversation about the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project, someone stated that we must move as quickly as possible to conduct memorial services for our ancestors and place markers at Middle Passage port sites, or their relevance will be lost for future generations. In 2013, many states will mark the 150th year anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which President Abraham Lincoln signed, legally releasing Read More

Source Documents for Blog Posts (May-August, 2012)

African American History, African American literature, African Diaspora, American legal system, American politics, descendants of slaves, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

Text: A Forgotten History: The Slave Trade and Slavery in New England, Choices for the 21st Century Education Program, Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, (2008). This work provides an overview of enslavement and the human trade of Africans in New England from the colonial period through the Revolutionary War. Based on primary sources and quotes it is an ideal teaching tool for instructors and students with an interest Read More

The Gathering at Fells Point

ancestors, descendants of slaves, Middle Passage, slave ports, slavery, transatlantic slave trade

There are moments in life when one tries to remember if there are many more important moments than the one that is being presently experienced. The 23rd of August 2012, was such a moment for most of us who gathered on the Broadway Pier at Fells Point in Baltimore. As dawn’s golden light spread across the water, voices, led by Reverend Cecil C. Gray accompanied by African drums and other Read More

“When Did We Become Americans?”: 1619 The Making of America

African American History, African Diaspora, descendants of slaves, slavery

At Norfolk State University in Virginia on September 21 and 22, 2012 a conference focused on the year 1619 will take place at the Student Center. For all who are able, we encourage your attendance and participation. The Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project is committed to promoting discussion and scholarship related to the Black Atlantic experience. In addition, three members of the project’s advisory and honorary boards are Read More