Background

National Reparations Rally
Saturday, September 13, 2003
UNITED NATIONS
47th Street & 1st Avenue, NYC
_________________________________________

The Road to the United Nations National Reparations Rally

In 2001, the United Nations World Conference against Racism declared the trans Atlantic slave trade, slavery, and colonialism crimes against humanity. A National Reparations Rally will be held at the United Nations (47th St & 1st Ave) on Saturday, September 13, 2003 at 12pm to demand that the criminals pay for their crimes against humanity.

The Millions for Reparations (MFR) organizing committee will bring together African reparations advocates in the US, Africa, Europe, and the Caribbean, and take the WCAR Pan African reparations mandate to the streets!

The MFR mobilization effort was initiated by the Durban 400, a grassroots delegation from the United States, at the World Conference against Racism (WCAR), held in Durban South Africa in September 2001. Led by the December 12th Movement International Secretariat and the National Black United Front, the Durban 400 is committed to making slavery reparations a mass grassroots issue. Last year's historic Reparations rally in Washington DC drew thousands from over 30 states to the first mass rally for reparations to be held in the United States.

At the WCAR, the Durban 400 relentlessly lobbied African and Caribbean national delegates holding votes in the conference on three key issues: (1) The declaration of the Trans Atlantic slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity; (2) Establishing the economic roots of racism and (3) Reparations.

The conference proved to be grueling. The debate on politics and language became fierce and words became weapons. Western delegates were intransigent and tried to pressure many developing nations to compromise in backroom brawls. Undaunted, delegate after delegate stood in steeled Pan African Unity. Algeria, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Zambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Namibia, Barbados, Belize, Tanzania, Gambia, and many others vociferously condemned the Trans Atlantic Slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity and demanded reparations.

When the United States government's delegation realized that a Pan African united front was concretizing they staged a high profile walk out. The rest of the world went on to make history without them. The final declaration of the WCAR clearly states that the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade, and slavery are crimes against humanity and recommended compensation from nations that perpetrated these crimes.

For Africans in the US, the WCAR was the culmination of years of struggle in the United Nations international arena. Following in the foot steps of William Patterson and Malcolm X, the December 12th Movement International Secretariat, a non governmental organization (NGO) with consultative status in the United Nations Economic and Social Council, has participated in the Commission on Human Rights since 1989, representing 40 million Africans in the United States. The Secretariat has established firm ties and alliances with nations and international organizations around the world. Their consistent and persistent work has resulted in the pivotal hearings on racism in the United States conducted by the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Maurice Glele in 1994 in Harlem NY.

Further, the Secretariat was instrumental in organizing hearings on human rights abuses in the US criminal justice system / death penalty conducted by UN Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Bacre Waly Ndiaye in 1997 in Brooklyn NY. The December 12th Movement IS has participated in many international conferences and was instrumental in the call for the third United Nations World Conference Against Racism 2001.

The National Black United Front (NBUF) is an organization made up of concerned and committed individuals and organizations who have united to assume responsibility for working and leading the struggle for a better life for themselves and their children. The Black United Front is a broad-based organization, which includes all social, political, religious and cultural sections of the Black community.

With the birth of the NBUF in June of 1980, the vision of building an organization that would represent the various elements of the Black community became a reality. Some 1500 Black people from 35 states and five countries came together to form a "united front." In the space of only five and half years, NBUF grew from five local chapters to over 18 certified local chapters and a presence in 40 cities nationwide. Since 1980, NBUF and its various chapters have dealt with, most notably, quality education for Black children, police and Black community relations, electoral politics, women's affairs, economic development, housing and international affairs.

The reparations movement is rapidly gaining momentum in the United States and around the world. This fundamental and critical issue may prove to be the catalyst of change in the African struggle for human rights, in the 21st century.