Babbelegûchjes

Slavery in Groningen? I never thought about these things being connected before… When thinking about slavery, plantations in the Americas come to mind, or the trading and transporting of slaves by companies like the W.I.C. (Dutch West India Company). Little did I know about all the traces of the slave-trading past that can be found in the city centre of Groningen. And honestly, how could I have known? Walking towards the Groninger Museum on a day quite hot and sunny for the time of year, I thought to myself: “What traces of slavery even are there in Groningen? Not like I’ve even seen them around the city, and I’ve been living here for two years now.” Little did I know how much Groningen’s past is tainted by slavery. At the Groninger museum, together with my classmates, I met up with dr. Barbara Henkes . Dr. Henkes has done quite some research on slavery in Groningen and currently she is working on a similar project in Friesland. In 2016 she published, together with Margriet Fo