African heritage community groups, in partnership with Anti-Slavery International, held a diverse programme of events from 21 to 24 August, commemorating the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, 23 August.

Activities exploring the lasting effects of the Transatlantic Slave Trade in Britain were held in Greenwich and Brixton, areas of London closely linked to the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

Participants from national, regional and community organisations and institutions including the Forum of Afrikans and Afrikan Descendants Against Racism, Greenwich Racial Equality Council, the Government Office for London, the Muslim College, and youth activists took part in a two-day convention, held from 21 to 22 August, at the University of Greenwich. Frank and open discussions took place around such issues as neighbourhood renewal, contemporary slavery, and the World Conference Against Racism 2001. A report of the findings with recommendations will be available later this year.

An evening Vigil of Remembrance was held in Cutty Sark Gardens, Greenwich for conference participants and members of the public to celebrate the unsung heroes of the past. Chief Omilade Oladele performed a libation ceremony followed by readings, spirituals, musical performances and other tributes to freedom, empowerment and resistance.

Thousands of people from across London and beyond attended the day of events in Cutty Sark Gardens on Saturday 23 August, marking the first successful uprising by enslaved Africans in Haiti (then St Domingue) 212 years ago. Throughout the afternoon audiences of all ages participated in resistance themed workshops, and enjoyed theatre and African music and dance performances.

Storytelling on-board the Cutty Sark, an historical slave trail around Greenwich led by historian SI Martin and workshops, talks and previews of The National Maritime Museum's African Enslavement Collection allowed the public to explore further the realities and implications of the Slave Trade.

In the evening, crowds descended on Cutty Sark Gardens for the Night of Remembrance and Celebration of Cultural Resistance, an open-air concert of music from Africa and the Diaspora. Bands from Africa, Latin America and the UK played into the night and the audience was moved by readings from dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson, who brought a fusion of oral verse and radical politics to the stage.

The four-day event closed with a final day of activities in Brixton on Sunday 24 August. An interfaith ceremony at St Matthews Church in Brixton brought a wide-range of faith communities together to share beliefs, experiences and reflections around the themes of justice, atonement and reconciliation. A heritage trail of the area and screenings of films at the Ritzy cinema in Brixton, completed the commemorative programme. This was just the beginning of the Rendezvous of Victory, a campaign which hopes to ensure that 23 August will become an annual commemorative day in Britain's calendar.