Ambassador Perry's Speeches

Amistad Opening Ceremony (Dec 9, 2007)

Your Worship, Mayor of Freetown,
Honorable Ministers,
Fellow Ambassadors,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Religious, traditional, and local leaders
Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, good morning.

I am honored to here as the representative of the United States and as a student of Professor John Hope Franklin, the world’s foremost historian of African-American History, and author of From Slavery to Freedom.  It is indeed my pleasure to be included in this morning’s program to welcome the Amistad ship as well as the many people from the Amistad America organization and the Freetown Amistad coordinating committee who made the visit possible.  I would especially like to thank Peter Hanson-Alp and Manilius Garber for their tireless efforts with the Amistad Coordinating Committee and Donald George from Amistad America, who has been on the ground in Freetown for weeks now making sure the visit comes off without a hitch.  We also welcome Mr. Minter, Chairman of Amistad America, and Mr. Greg Belanger, President of the same, their crew and their team of educators and scientists.

The ship that we see before us has made a long journey from its home in Connecticut on America’s east coast, facing the Atlantic Ocean, to the shores of Sierra Leone, just as the histories of the United States and Sierra Leone have made a long journey to arrive at the point we find ourselves today.  Some parts of both have been difficult, as this ship, a replica of a slave ship, makes clear.  But the place we stand now, united in the ideals of freedom, democracy, and human rights is a place of hope and promise for the future.
The original Amistad ship was a Spanish schooner that landed in America, so I think it is apropos to quote Spanish-American poet and philosopher George Santayana, who said "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”  It is for this reason that we gather today – to remember the past so that we never repeat it. 

We also remember the past, though, to honor those courageous individuals who helped us progress out of a time in which many believed that certain human beings – especially those of African, North and South American Indians and some Aisans -- should be legally regarded as property.  We honor those who revolted on the Amistad to assert their basic human rights, and we honor those who defended them in the American court system and won their freedom.

This year we celebrated 200 years since the end of the slave trade on the high seas. While this is an achievement we as people can be proud of, it is far from a time to rest on our laurels.  Human rights remain under threat in many places of the world; people still toil away at menial jobs for less than a living wage, and men, women, and children are still forcefully trafficked for exploitative purposes all over the world.

While the Amistad is in Freetown, I encourage each of you all to enjoy it, mix and mingle with the American crew and students on board, tour the ship and celebrate the historic act it commemorates.  But I also urge you to think about how far we still have to go before all people in the world have equal opportunities to meet their potential in freedom and security.

Thank you all for coming here today and thank you for the time you have given us.  I look forward to seeing you during the Amistad’s historic docking here in Sierra Leone.