By Tina Bach
On February 27th, the 4th March in commemoration to the African victims of the slave trade, enslavement, colonialism and racist violence will take place in Berlin.
The march begins at Gröbenufer/May-Ayim-Ufer and is organized by the Commitee for an African monument in Berlin (KADIB).
This year the commemoration march marks the end of the campaign 125 years Afrika Konferenz Berlin which has been initiated by a network of more than 70 organisations.
Also due to the renaming of the Gröbenufer in Berlin-Kreuzberg to May-Ayim-Ufer everyone is invited to participate in the related celebration ceremony from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
May Ayim was a writer of African German descent who contribted immensely to the scientic research about the history of Black people in Germany. Groeben on the other hand was a man known for his role in colonization policies.
After the celebration ceremony at 1 p.m. there will be a march to Wilhelmstr 92, Berlin, where there is a memorial sign in rememberance to the Afrika Konferenz Berlin. The Comitee for an African Monument considers the renaming of the Gröbenufers to May-Ayim-Ufer as an important step to the right direction.
The genocides in which Germany played a role - against Hereros in Namibia and Maji-Maji in Tansania - are not officially recognized until today. Several hundred thousand people of African descent fought together with the allied forces for the resurrection of Germany from the Nazi Regime in World War II.
Thousands of Black Germans, the so-called "Rheinlandbastarde" were sterelized by Nazis or murdered in concentration camps. This side of Germany's history has not been dealth with officially until today.
For details regarding the march see document (PDF) here.