Memorialization, including education and awarness-raising.

 Without the memory of the past, there can be no right to truth, justice or reparation, or guarantees of non-repetition (A/HRC/45/45, para. 21). Memorialization can constitute a form of satisfaction. Together with educational and awareness-raising measures, it can also help to guarantee non-repetition. The Secretary-General, the High Commissioner and several United Nations experts have called on States to take measures to preserve and commemorate the memory of these past tragedies and their legacies and to ensure their accurate reflection and dissemination through school curricula and awareness-raising campaigns.

Memorialization processes require States to play an active role in preserving and making accessible archives and other evidence (E/CN.4/2005/102/Add.1, principles 3, 14 and 15). This should aim at preserving the collective memory from extinction and, in particular, at guarding against the development of revisionist and negationist arguments (Ibid., principle 3). The participation of people of African descent in memorialization processes is also of critical importance (A/76/180, para. 79, and A/HRC/45/45, para. 38).

 Memory policy and work are multidimensional and may include commemoration and tribute to victims (e.g. memory laws, national days of memory), measures related to public spaces (e.g. memorial sites, commemorative monuments, renaming of streets and public places), artistic and cultural expressions (e.g. museums, plays, concerts, exhibits), media initiatives and other public events and activities.

At the international level, the General Assembly proclaimed 31 August as the International Day for People of African Descent in December 2020 (A/RES/75/170). At the national level, several countries observe national commemorations for people of African descent or for the abolition of slavery.46 In 2022, in Canada, the government of the Province of Prince Edward Island formally recognized 1 August as Emancipation Day. In 2021, the President of the United States signed legislation proclaiming Juneteenth a public holiday to commemorate 19 June 1865, when enslaved people in Galveston learned they were free (A/HRC/47/CRP.1, para. 266). In June 2020, the European parliament proclaimed 2 December as the European Day Commemorating the Abolition of the Slave Trade (European Parliament resolution 2020/2685 (RSP)). 

Memorial sites and museums are another important aspect of memorialization policies. The Routes of Enslaved Peoples: Resistance, Liberty and Heritage project has supported the establishment of memorial sites and routes at the national, regional and international levels.

In Argentina, the National Commission for the Historical Recognition of the Afro-Argentine Community was mandated in 2020 to recover sites that have special meaning for people of African descent and the Ministry of Culture has promoted the engagement of museums and national institutions in disseminating greater knowledge about the history and memory of communities of African descent.

 In Mauritius, the Intercontinental Slavery Museum was officially launched on 20 October 2020.

 In Mexico, memory sites were inaugurated in Mexico City in 2016 and in Cuajinicuilapa and Yanga in 2017. In several countries, local authorities have also initiated reflections on decolonizing public spaces, including public monuments and street names (A/HRC/47/ CRP.1, paras. 267–268).

 Memorialization measures can also take the form of artistic and cultural public events. In Canada, Mauritius, the United Kingdom and the United States, Black History Month marks a period of historical and cultural events recognizing the history of enslavement.

Memory work also includes the revision of school and university curricula and public awareness-raising campaigns about the history and cultures of people of African descent (CERD/C/GC/34, para. 66). Panama reported that its Government Strategic Plan 2020–2024 included specific actions for greater recognition and respect for the culture, history and heritage of people of African descent. 

In Sweden, the Forum for Living History presented in February 2023 new educational materials for secondary and adult education uncovering the history of Sweden’s participation in enslavement and the transatlantic slave trade. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela reported that the 2025 Programmatic Agenda for the Afro-Descendant included measure that were aimed at decolonizing knowledge and education.