North England & Yorkshire

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KKK outfit and American quilt - new acquisitions for the International Slavery Museum

A 1920s Ku Klux Klan outfit has been donated to the forthcoming International Slavery Museum in Liverpool as a horrific reminder of the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade.

The object will be an important part of the legacy section of the gallery, which explores the positive and negative effects of the trade throughout the world. Very few objects of this kind are on display outside the US.

Consisting of a hood, robe, cloak and rope belt and made from white cotton with mother of pearl buttons, the outfit comes from a branch of the KKK which operated in Orange County, New York.

The legacy section will address issues such as freedom, identity, human rights, reparations, racial discrimination and cultural change. The museum will also seek to address ignorance and misunderstanding by looking at the deep and permanent impact of slavery and the slave trade on Africa, South America, the USA, the Caribbean and Western Europe.

David Fleming, Director of National Museums Liverpool, said: ‘I’m sure some people will be shocked to be confronted in Liverpool by such a sinister object, dripping with hatred and viciousness, but then these are living legacies of the slave trade, which Liverpool dominated. Racial hatred lives on, and we can only hope to understand and counter it if we know about the history of the slave trade. Ignoring it, as many of us have done in Britain for 200 years, is not an option if we wish to see a society which is characterised by the celebration of difference and by equality for all.’

Within the same section, close to the KKK outfit, will be a quilt recently created by the women of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, a small rural community settled in the curve of the Alabama River on the site of what was once a cotton plantation owned by Joseph Gee and his relatives.

Quilting is a long-held tradition in America, dating back to the days when slave women used scraps of discarded material to create intricate designs. The unique aesthetics of these quilts comes out of the oppression experienced by slaves who were stripped of their identities, religions and languages, and could only find self expression in their music, dance and art.

Over the centuries the women of Gee’s Bend have developed a distinctive, bold and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional American (and African American) quilts, with a geometric style reminiscent of Amish quilts and modern art.

The Gee’s Bend Quilters Collective is owned and operated by the women of Gee’s Bend, guaranteeing each quilt is a unique, individually produced, and authentic piece of art.

The galleries of the International Slavery Museum will open in Liverpool on 23 August, Slavery Remembrance Day 2007, a day that commemorates an uprising of enslaved Africans on the island of St Domingo (modern Haiti and the Dominican Republic) in 1791. Designated by UNESCO, the date was chosen as a reminder that enslaved Africans were the main agents of their own liberation.

The museum will feature new dynamic and thought-provoking displays about the story of the transatlantic slave trade. A second phase of the project, due to open in 2010, will include the development of a new visitor-focused education centre with an events programme of performance, public lectures and debate using the newly-acquired Dock Traffic Office. A research institute based in the museum is being developed in partnership with the University of Liverpool.

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A 1,000-seater big-top in the grounds of Harewood House will be the dramatic setting for a re-staging of Carnival Messiah: a symbolic commemoration of the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade.

The backdrop of Harewood House, built in the mid-18th century with money made from the sugar trade, brings an extraordinary resonance to Carnival Messiah which has its origins in Trinidad & Tobago and the Leeds Carnival, one of the earliest Caribbean Carnivals in the UK which celebrates its fortieth anniversary in 2007.

Carnival Messiah is an ambitious, large-scale piece of theatre with a cast of over 100 including a chorus to be recruited from the community of Leeds at open auditions on April 21 at Opera North's rehearsal studios. The 20 performances will include a new element of 'J'ouvert', extending the show into the car-park and grounds before audiences reach their seats.

In addition to having the chance to perform, the community cast will have access to a new and extensive education, skills and training programme, making participants aware of the many cultural heritages the show draws upon - their own and other peoples. Funded by Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) this will be a further development of Harewood's HLF supported education programme, which targets new audiences and works with all sections of the community.

Harewood House has a long musical heritage. John White, Music Master at Harewood, conducted the massed choirs for the famous performance of Handel's Messiah in York

Minster in 1823 and his annotated score was recently discovered in the Library at Harewood. In his diaries, William Wilberforce remembers singing at a Harewood soiree in 1796, accompanied on the piano by the then Lady Harewood. The present Lord Harewood is a major figure in 20th century music in Britain. He has been Director of the Edinburgh Festival, Managing Director of English National Opera and one of the founders of Opera North. One of his more unusual recent musical experiences was feeling the furniture in his apartment in Harewood House shake as Massive Attack and The Who began their sets at last year's O2 Festival.

Carnival Messiah is another chapter in Harewood's rich and varied musical history.

David Lascelles, talking about Carnival Messiah at Harewood:

'There is no more comprehensive, more multi-dimensional, more exuberant expression of Caribbean culture in Britain today than "Carnival Messiah" - a two- hour spectacular musical showcase that blends the excitement, music and colour of carnival with some of the most inspiring melodies of Handel's Messiah in an exhilarating musical and theatrical celebration.'

Geraldine Connor:

'I originally conceived Carnival Messiah as a way of bringing together people of different backgrounds, ethnicities and creeds. What better way to do that, I thought, than through media that are universal to us all - art, theatre, dance and music - and in so doing help to move towards a better understanding of the shared heritages of Europe and the Caribbean.

In its new form at Harewood in 2007 I hope it can create in the performers and audiences new to the show a transformation that can take us all to a new space, a new dimension, a new understanding and give us a new hope.'

The general public should contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or 0113 218 1010 for further details.

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A new image created for Carnival Messiah at Harewood has been created by artist Paul Hodgson. The image and a short DVD of Carnival Messiah video clips are available.

For information, contact Anita Morris or Rebecca Wood, Anita Morris Associates This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tel. +44 (0)1943 603311

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Ahead of the 200th Anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade, the University of Bradford will be holding a free public lecture and exhibition on Friday 23 March 2007.

Sunday 25 March 2007 marks the 200th anniversary of the 1807 Abolition of the Slave Trade Act. This Act outlawed the slave trade throughout the British Empire and made it illegal for British ships to be involved in the trade, marking the beginning of the end for the transatlantic traffic in human beings.

The University of Bradford will host one of the first in a number of events to be held in Bradford throughout this year marking this 200th anniversary. A free event featuring a public lecture and exhibition on Friday 23 March 2007 will take place in the University’s Atrium between 11.30am and 1pm.

The keynote speaker will be Darcus Howe, broadcaster and columnist, who will give a lecture on ‘Rebel Slaves and Self Emancipation’.  Darcus Howe is renowned for his role in the Channel 4 series ‘Devil’s Advocate’ in which he challenges traditional viewpoints.

Other speakers include Professor Jeff Lucas, Deputy-Vice Chancellor at the University of Bradford and Tony Reeves, Chief Executive of Bradford Metropolitan District Council.

The University of Bradford’s Race Champion and Professor of Diversity, Uduak Archibong, said: “In Bradford, our commemoration will seek to offer a different perspective on the achievement of abolition and the power of the incarcerated in achieving justice. We need to listen to the voices of those underneath demanding change.

 “Whilst we are celebrating the end of the slave trade as we knew it since 1807, we must also double up our efforts in addressing the slave trade as it exists today.”

Professor Chris Taylor, Vice-Chancellor of University of Bradford, said: “The bicentenary is an important opportunity to reflect on the struggles of the past, the progress we have made and the challenges that remain.”

For more information about forthcoming events and activities, please contact Kellie Young at the University of Bradford on 01274 236448 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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The links between the slave trade and the port cities are well known. Revealing Histories demonstrates its impact on Greater Manchester for the first time

Greater Manchester’s historical involvement in the slave trade is one that has been largely unexplored in comparison to Britain’s port cities, such as Liverpool and Bristol. However, the economic rise of Manchester and the North West during the 18th and 19th centuries is intrinsically linked with the slave trade.

A series of exhibitions and events across Greater Manchester in this bicentenary year seeks to uncover the region’s involvement in the slave trade as well as its contribution to slavery’s ultimate abolition.

Revealing Histories sees eight museums and galleries across the region (see below for list) join together to explore and commemorate the lasting legacy of the slave trade.

Emma Walker, chair of the Revealing Histories marketing group explains: “Revealing Histories takes a fresh look at the collections of these museums and galleries and the buildings they are housed in, revealing hidden histories of the region’s involvement in the slave trade.

“The project includes exhibitions, discussion and debate groups, citywide tours and creative youth partnerships. Public interaction plays an essential role in our year of activity.

“Revealing Histories illustrates the pervasive effect of the slave trade on British life beyond the port cities. Understanding the history of the slave trade and its legacies give it a contemporary resonance, and can be used to alter people’s perspectives and prejudices,“ concludes Emma.

Greater Manchester and the slave trade backgrounds

During the slave trade period, British ships transported an estimated 2.8 million African slaves. The North West of England built its new industrialised economy around this trade. Slavery boosted the textile industry, which was the engine of the Industrial Revolution.
 

Goods from Greater Manchester, primarily cotton textiles, were in great demand in West Africa and were traded for slaves throughout the 18th century. By 1770 one third of Manchester textiles were sold to the African market.
 

After the British abolished the slave trade in 1807 and subsequently slavery in 1834, they continued to import slave-grown raw cotton from the United States. This was produced by black slaves on plantations across the Southern States. Whilst the slave trade involved the purchase and shipment of perhaps 50,000 slaves a year before 1807, American cotton in 1861 was being grown by up to 2.5 million slaves.
 

Cotton and the businesses and products associated with it influenced the lives of virtually everyone living in Greater Manchester: directly through working in the cotton mills or by trading in cotton and indirectly through wearing cotton clothes, or working in businesses associated with cotton wealth such as banking. Several prominent Manchester families also owned plantations or were involved directly in slave trading through organising or helping finance slaving voyages.
 

By 1801, as a result of dramatic economic growth, Liverpool and Manchester were the largest provincial cities in Britain. The prosperity of industrial Greater Manchester is reflected in its built environment, through the mills and warehouses in which the cotton was produced and stored as well as the museums and galleries built to showcase this wealth.
 

The region was also home to a strong and active abolitionist movement. Manchester was at the centre of the anti-slavery movement during its early days. In 1787, 10,000 people – two thirds of Manchester’s male population - signed a petition against the slave trade.
 

In 1807, 439 mill owners petition against the abolition bill – within a few hours a counter-petition had 2,354 names. The abolition of slavery was a key issue in the general election of 1831, following the Great Reform Act, which gave Manchester political representation in Parliament for the first time.
 

Details for the whole year of Revealing Histories events across Greater Manchester can be found at www.revealinghistories.org.uk or contact T: 0161 238 4540 to receive an event programme.

Participating galleries and museums across Greater Manchester

Bolton Museum & Archive Service

Gallery Oldham

Manchester Art Gallery

Museum of Science & Industry

People’s History Museum

The Manchester Museum

The Whitworth Art Gallery

Touchstones Rochdale

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