Marian Douglas-Ungaro

In late 2002, living in Nairobi, Kenya, my husband and I made what, for me, a descendant of Africa's slave trades, was a pilgrimage to Kenya's Indian Ocean coast. During our time in Kenya, we made about three trips to the coast.

Quiet as it was kept, 14 May 2012 was the 405th anniversary of the 1607 trans-Atlantic arrival of a hundred English settlers to the coast of the land soon-to-be colonised by the English as “Virginia”.

I seem to be moving beyond the phase of waking up wondering if what happened in Haiti on 12 January 2010 was a terrible dream or a reality. It is all too real, and will remain so the rest of our lives.

Mr Speaker, the African slave trade stands out in the annals of world history as one of the greatest crimes ever committed against humanity. It is important that we institutionalise every possible reminder of this horrible chapter in our civilisation.