demark

Did you know that Denmark was the seventh-largest trading nation during the Transatlantic Slave Trade? Denmark had three colonial territories in the Caribbean: the islands of St Croix, St John and St Thomas. During the slavery era Denmark trafficked over 100,000 enslaved Africans to those islands, referred to as ‘the Danish West Indies’. This came to an end in 1848 when Denmark abolished slavery. In 1917 Denmark sold the islands to the United States, and they became known as the US Virgin Islands.

In 2018, Denmark unveiled the country’s first statue to commemorate a Black woman. The statue is called ‘I am Queen Mary’ and was created by artists Jeannette Ehlers and La Vaughn Belle. It honors Mary Thomas, who, in the 19th century, led the largest labor revolt in Danish colonial history on the island of St Croix. Mary’s pose was inspired by the famous 1967 photograph of Huey P Newton, the founder of the Black Panther Party.

china

It’s surprising that people don’t associate China with Black history when in reality, there has been an African presence in China since the 7th century. During the Tang dynasty, Arab traders trafficked enslaved Africans to China, and they were referred to as ‘Kunlun’. As trade between Africa and China developed, during the Yuan dynasty, a number of African commodities were imported to China, including ivory, tortoise shell and frankincense. During the Ming Dynasty the Chinese imported rhinoceros horns, amber and animals from East Africa.

Nowadays, China is home to the largest migrant African population in Asia. The largest settlement can be found in the major port city of Guangzhou. The African enclave in Guangzhou is informally referred to as ‘Chocolate City’ or ‘Little Africa’. Many of the African residents there capitalize on buying cheap consumer goods in China which they export to their home nations in Africa to sell. Most traders only come temporarily, though many do settle and start a life in China, often marrying local women.

Venezuela

If you’re ever in Venezuela then save the date of May 10 because that is Afro-Venezuelan Day. The date was chosen to commemorate the uprising of Jose Leonardo Chirino, a free Black man who, in 1795, co-ordinated the most famous uprising of Black and indigenous people in Venezuela’s history. He has gone down in history as a symbol of resistance both to slavery and Spanish colonial rule in Venezuela.

Did you know that Afro-Venezuelans played an important role in Venezuela’s fight for independence? The most famous Afro-Venezuelan Independence fighter was Pedro Camejo, also known as El Negro Primero, or in English ‘the Black man who goes first’ because he was reportedly always the first to ride into battle. He was famously killed in action in 1821 in the second battle of Carabobo which eventually led to Venezuela’s independence. Today Pedro Camejo is a national symbol of bravery and resistance, and there is a statue of him in Plaza Carabobo in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.

Today there are just over 1,000,000 self-identified Afro-Venezuelans, and the largest population can be found in the region of Barlovento.

argentina

Aren’t we getting tired of the myth that there’s no Black people in Argentina? According to the 2010 census the Afro-Argentine population is less than 150,000, while other sources claim there are as many as two million Afrodescendant people in Argblaentina today.

The National Day of Afro-Argentines is celebrated on November 8 to commemorate the death of a national hero: Maria Remedios del Valle. Known as the ‘Mother of The Homeland’ Maria fought as a soldier in the Argentine war of Independence before being wounded, imprisoned and then escaping. Following the war, she was denied compensation and took to begging before being recognized by one of the generals she had fought under, who then arranged for her to receive a pension until she died.

In recent years there has been a resurgence of Afro-Argentine political and social activity. Organizations such as Grupo Cultural Afro, SOS Racismo and Africa Vive have worked to revive interest in Afro-Argentine culture and advocate for the community.

turkey

Although no official statistics exist, the Afro-Turkish population today is estimated to number up to 25,000 people. The majority live in the region of Izmir on the Aegean coast. They are largely descended from the tens of thousands of enslaved Africans brought to Turkey during the Ottoman Empire to work in farming, cotton production and processing tobacco.

A number of Black males were also made eunuchs and elite royal guards to the royal family. Although they were technically slaves, Black Eunuchs in Turkish society were sometimes granted a relatively high degree of political power and authority. The highest position a Eunuch could ascend to was the position of Kizlar Agha, the third most powerful position in the royal court after the Sultan and the Grand Vizier.

In 2006, the African Solidarity and Cooperation Association (ASCA) was founded by the late Mustafa Olpak. This led to a revival in Afro-Turkish culture, in particular the Dana Bayrami festival, an Afro-Turkish festival that dates back to the 1920s and represents families separated by slavery being reunited and sacrificing a bull in celebration.

iraq

There are an estimated 1.5 million Afro-Iraqis living in Iraq today, making up 5% of the population. They are mostly concentrated in southern Iraq with the largest population in the Zubeir district of Basra.

From the ninth century onwards Arabs brought enslaved Africans to southern Iraq to work in the salt marshes and on the date plantations, along with enslaved Circassian and Georgian people. They also worked as domestic support in the houses of wealthy families and sometimes as soldiers.

In 869, there was a massive uprising called the Zanj rebellion, described as one of the bloodiest in Western Asia. The majority of soldiers were enslaved people and freemen of African-descent, led by ‘Ali Ibn Muhammed. The uprising was successful and the Zanj established their own government in southern Iraq, with its own army and even minted coins. This African state lasted almost fifteen years until the Abbasid army regained control of the territory, though the military prowess of the Zanj soldiers was not forgotten.