USVI Reparations Movement Threatened

Guest Opinion by Shelley Moorhead

As we count down to yet another historic departure to Denmark scheduled for January 12th-18th, 2008, and as we embark upon a mission to repair and address Virgin Islands Humanity, I will speak for ACRRA and the many thousands impacted by the work of the USVI Reparations Movement and I will say that we are concerned and that we are troubled to see our leaders remain silent, withdrawn, and unaccounted for, and to see Governor John de Jongh’s administration fail to release funding that the Legislature has appropriated for a St. Croix-based NGO, the African-Caribbean Reparations Resettlement Alliance (ACRRA) to continue dialogue with Denmark.

After numerous communications between myself, Governor John P. de Jongh, and members of his administration, as well as promises made by the Governor during the September 2007 Economic Summit to “support those who want to go to Denmark to seek that government’s support”, the Governor has failed to release the funding appropriated by the 27th Legislature during the September 2007 legislative session and signed by him as part of the FY08 Budget just a few weeks following his statement at the Summit.

Prior to the enactment of the FY08 Budget to include the approval of funding for ACRRA’s operating expenses and the organization’s reparations initiatives; on July 6, 2007, I met with Mr. David Edgecombe, Assistant to the Governor for External Affairs. During that meeting Edgecombe assured that policy on slavery-era reconciliation and repair would be “forthcoming in the next few weeks”, and also expressed that current talks between the USVI Government and the Danish Government were inclusive of discussions on reparations. Six months have passed and no such policy has been issued, neither has there been observable dialogue between the Virgin Islands government and its former colonial master, Denmark, on slavery, repair, or any of the matters relative to the restoration of the human heritage in the former Danish West Indies society.

ACRRA has led the charge, and with the leadership and support of local officials and through partnerships with a host of community representatives and organizations, The USVI Reparations Movement has accomplished a great feat: securing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the St. Croix-based organization and a reputable Danish NGO, the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR). The agreement provides the framework to begin the process of addressing the effects of 175 years of the Danish Institution of African Slavery and the concurrent 250 years of Danish colonization in what are today the United States Virgin Islands. The MOU, signed April 11th, 2005, most importantly established a Joint USVI-Denmark Reparations Task Force, ACRRA heading up the Virgin Islands side, and DIHR the Danish side.

The Task Force has already outlined and embarked upon numerous initiatives to include scholarship programs, development of heritage tourism in the USVI, implementation of student and youth exchange, coeducational programs between USVI and Danish organizations, community forums and conferences, poverty reduction programs, agricultural and economic initiatives, and others all aimed reconciliation and repair between a former colony and colonial master.

The funding allotted to the organization by the Legislature each year provides operating capital and is the primary resource for the carrying out of programs locally and internationally. Without immediate access to the funding many time-sensitive projects and strategic initiatives are severely threatened. On November 15th, I received an official copy of a letter written from Ms. Debra Gottlieb, Director of the USVI Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to Mr. Robert Mathes, Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, stating simply: “This acknowledges receipt of a correspondence dated November 6, 2007 from Mr. Shelley A. Moorhead, President of [ACRRA], requesting the release of funds. However, [OMB] is unable to release the requested funds at this time…”

The same administration has recognized the importance of the milestones achieved by the Virgin Islands Reparations Movement, as the Governor stated in an August 22, 2007 letter to ACRRA that “…the [MOU] between ACRRA and [DIHR] holds tremendous promise and [we] encourage you to continue to implement it”. Governor de Jongh in this letter also stated that “it is not healthy for government or any other entity to control the discourse [on historical matters]… and that is why it is good to see ACRRA and other NGOs taking the initiative and holding discussions on these significant issues”.

This 1-step-forward-2-steps-back approach, often postured with indecision and general non-interest on the part of the de Jongh administration has added great confusion and hardship to what is already a very complex historical human rights issue. In August 2007, Government House declined to send representation to the Global Dialogue being held in Barbados. The international conference hosted by Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur addressed the themes of the Slave Trade, Slavery, Abolition, Reparations, Reconciliation, Regional Integration, Democratic Governance and Pan-African Unity – all issues which despite time have endured to exist as an inseparable part of the daily Virgin Islands reality.

More than two years have passed since the Legislature of the Virgin Islands became the first in the region to formally announce a position on reparations. On May 4th, 2005, the 26th Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands made history when a landmark resolution sponsored by Senators Usie Richards and Celestino A. White, Sr. became the first of its kind in a former Caribbean slave colony, whereby present day descendants of enslaved Africans organized to officially condemn the institution of slavery and seek reparations from the European nation historically responsible for the same. Additionally, Bill No. 26-0045 calls for the Office of the Governor of the USVI to recommend reparations models that may be implemented by the Joint USVI / Denmark Reparations Task Force, ACRRA, and DIHR; However, little, if any, has been done – in any regard – to meet, discuss, or advance the repair being advocated by the local Task Force.

ACRRA has made considerable strides toward a productive reparations discourse in a short time span. The organization has organized and hosted three roundtable reparations discussions in the U.S. Virgin Islands in 2004, 2006, and 2007, where the local population has been given the opportunity to voice their opinions on the issue thus establishing a collective dialogue on the dark history of the territory. The first roundtable discussion led to an official USVI delegation to Denmark. The delegation not only consisted of ACRRA representatives, but also of USVI Delegate to the U.S. Congress, Dr. Donna M. Christensen, Virgin Islands senators Usie Richards and Terrence “Positive” Nelson, Attorney Terence Todman, Jr., and Dr. Carlyle Corbin, former USVI Minister of State for External Affairs. In addition to the informal exchange of ideas and viewpoints, the discussions between the USVI delegation and DIHR led to the historic MOU between ACRRA and DIHR. The MOU is the first accord of its kind between organizations in the Caribbean and Europe acknowledging the “economic, psychological, social and emotional harm” suffered by Africans enslaved in the Caribbean, more specifically by the people of the Virgin Islands during the period of slavery. The document determines that reparations must comprise education, restoration and reconciliation and in order to pursue reparations the agreement established the Joint Task Force which is comprised of both Danes and Virgin Islanders intended to examine initiatives promoting reparations such as research projects, conferences and cultural exchanges.

It remains ACRRA’s vision that the principles of repair institutionalized in the Task Force play an essential role in the relative restoration of humanity which remains impaired and un-intact in the Virgin Islands, Denmark, the Caribbean, Africa and affected points beyond. For this and many other enduring reasons, ACRRA has maintained a course of community education and advocacy on the issue locally and internationally.

Shelley Moorhead, St. Croix
President, ACRRA

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