Page 46 - Phonebox Magazine July 2007

The March of the Abolitionists in Olney
They're walking in yokes and chains between the former slave ports to apologise for the slave trade
This will be a major event in Olney. On July 7th the 20 marchers of many races and walking in yokes and chains will reach the St. John's Ambulace Hall in Olney at 4.45pm. There they will be joined by an escort of Scouts and Guides and other young people. We hope there will also be a group of African dancers and drummers. The parade will set out at 4.45pm to walk down the High Street to the Market Place. We hope that local people will join the march. In the Market Place the marchers will give a short explanation of the occasion and an account of continuing slavery in the world today. We hope the event will be attended by reporters from radio, press and television. The marchers will join local young people in singing Campfire songs till 6.00pm. From the Market Place the march
will go on through the Museum and its gardens to the Parish Church and to visit John Newton's grave in the Churchyard.at 6.30pm. We hope there will be an opportunity for the public to have a preview of the new John Newton and the Antislavery movement displays in preparation at the Cowper and Newton Museum.
You can see and hear more of the marchers by coming to the CIVIC RECEPTION and Buffet Supper at 7.30pm at the Olney Centre on Saturday evening on July 7th. The Civic Reception will be attended by the Mayor of Olney and the deputy Mayor of Milton Keynes – and of course by our own Town Queen and Princesses. Or you may like to meet the marchers at a Barn Dance in the Church Hall at 7.30pm on Sunday 8th when a fish and chip supper will be provided. Tickets for both these events cost £12, or just £6 for under 16s at the Barn Dance. Tickets are on sale from Words Bookshop
and from the Museum (01234 711516). On Saturday evening there will also be a talk by the expedition's leader and a showing of a DVD about other marches in West Africa and the North Atlantic. Pupils at the Olney campus of Ousedale School will be able to meet the marchers at a special assembly on the morning of Monday July 9th.
Olney has been selected as an important stopping place for the March of the Abolitionists because of its association with John Newton. John Newton was for 15 years the Curate in Olney but his early life had been spent as captain of a slave ship. After his conversion to Christian faith he wrote the well-known hymn 'Amazing Grace' and he was the spiritual force behind William Wilberforce in his fight for the abolition of the slave trade which we remember this year.
The March of the Abolitionists is a walk of reconciliation that offers an apology for the Atlantic slave trade and sees white people donning yokes and chains. It began with a 250-mile walk from Hull to Westminster in March this year. On June 4th the walkers set off again from Deptford in south east London for the second stage, which links former slave ports in UK, including London, Bristol, and Liverpool, and then back to London via Olney.
The March is not just about the past. It aims to highlight the 12 million people trapped in different forms of slavery today. Britain's prosperity in the modern world has its roots in its slave-trading past and the marchers hope their efforts will raise funds to bring release to today's slaves – the bonded labourers, sex slaves, trafficked children and child soldiers.
The purposes of the March is:
1. To bring an apology for the slave trade (especially the role of the Church) and to help those we meet deal with its legacy.
2. To engage with schools, public forums and the media about the true history of slavery and abolition, promoting greater understanding, reconciliation and forgiveness.
3. To remember the black and white abolitionists of 200 years ago and wholeheartedly support the current campaigns seeking to end the atrocity of contemporary slavery.
For further information contact Rena Partridge on 01234 240018 or e-mail: rena@uwclub.net ❑
46 Phonebox Magazine
Winners of Castle Ashby Country Fair Competition: Terry Ray, Newport Pagnell; E Scowen, Newport Pagnell; M Scales, Olney; Mrs Scott, Bozeat