'My Grandfather Went to Cuba. What Did He Go There to Do? Slave Traders and Slavers, the Colonial Business' Workshop
10 November 2026 · 18:00
Centre Cívic Vallvidrera Vázquez Montalbán, Vallvidrera, el Tibidabo i les Planes, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi
Why, when we think about slavery in the 19th century, do we only think of cotton plantations and Gone with the Wind? Why were we not taught at school that the Kingdom of Castile was a pioneer in trafficking people from Africa to the Americas? How, and who, took part in this infamy from Catalonia? Which companies and institutions have their origins in money earned through the enslavement of millions of people? What does treating enslaved people as mere commodities have to do with present-day racism, which causes contempt and mistreatment of many people in our country? What can be done now? We are not responsible for what our ancestors did, but we are responsible for how we deal with it. Led by Nani Hidalgo.
Source: Ajuntament de Barcelona · checked on 8 September 2026