London funds community projects to remember the victims of transatlantic slavery
London is funding new community projects to explore the capital’s role in transatlantic slavery, as plans progress for a major public memorial honouring enslaved Africans and their descendants.
Ten community organisations will receive up to £10,000 each through the Mayor of London’s Sites of Memory programme, with funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Announced during Black History Month, the grants will support exhibitions, guided walks, local research, and storytelling projects examining the history of slavery and its continuing legacy.
The programme will also help identify locations for smaller, permanent memorials across London. These will be inspired by The Wake, a planned installation in West India Quay, London Docklands, which recently received planning permission.
Designed by artist Khaleb Brooks, The Wake will be a bronze installation nearly seven metres high, shaped like a cowrie shell. The shells hold deep cultural significance, but were also used as currency in the slave trade, becoming associated with the commodification and exploitation of human life.
Planning permission allows work to move forward on what is intended to become London’s first major public memorial dedicated to the victims of transatlantic slavery. West India Quay was chosen for its close historical connections to the trade.
London played a significant role in financing and organising transatlantic slavery. Although the capital contains monuments and historic buildings reflecting the wealth generated by the trade, as well as memorials commemorating abolition, there are comparatively few public memorials dedicated to the millions of African people who were enslaved.
The funded projects will explore some of the histories that have received less public attention. In Camden, a touring exhibition will examine the lives of people who struggled for liberty, justice, and freedom. In Waltham Forest, a community-led research and storytelling initiative will investigate the borough’s connections to slavery and the longstanding presence of people of African descent.
In the City of London, five guided walking tours will uncover overlooked Black histories in the Square Mile, connecting familiar streets and buildings with stories that are less widely recognised.
Together, the projects are intended to build a wider network of places where Londoners can engage with this history. Alongside The Wake, the smaller memorials will provide opportunities for remembrance, education, and reflection across the capital.
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