Justice For All Commemorates International Day of Remembrance for Victims of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

Calls for Justice, Reparations and Continued Vigilance Against Modern Forms of Enslavement and Persecution

March 25, 2025

On this International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, and the 10th anniversary of the U.N.’s Ark of Return memorial to the victims of the transatlantic slave trade, Justice For All honors the millions of Africans who suffered under this brutal system. The late human rights leader and convert to Islam, el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz (Malcolm X) framed slavery as a foundational violence that still shapes oppression. So today we reflect on its enduring legacy—particularly the often-overlooked history of enslaved Muslims—and renew our commitment to confronting systemic oppression wherever it persists today.

“The transatlantic slave trade was not just an economic system but a war on human dignity,” Imam Malik Mujahid, president of Justice For All, says. “Its legacy lives on in racial injustice, economic disparity and the persecution of minorities worldwide. We must confront this history to dismantle its modern manifestations.”

We note that Muslims are forgotten victims of the transatlantic slave trade. Historians estimate 20% of the over 10–15 million Africans who were enslaved between 1441 and 1840 were Muslim. Enslaved Africans included scholars, artisans and leaders from West African empires like Mali and Songhai. Millions died in transit. Their stories—such as the 1835 Malê Rebellion in Brazil and the writings of Omar ibn Said, an enslaved Senegalese scholar—testify to resistance and resilience.

“El-Shabazz, or Malcolm X’s, teachings remind us that the slave trade was not an anomaly but a blueprint for ongoing dehumanization,” notes Imam Saffet Catovic,  Justice For All’s director of U.N. operations. “From Gaza to Burma/Myanmar, from China to the Central African Republic, we see echoes of this system in the persecution of Muslims and other minorities.”

On this day Justice For All calls for action on key unresolved issues:

1. Reparative justice for descendants of the enslaved.
2. Truth-telling in education about slavery’s Muslim victims and their resistance.
3. The end of systemic racism in housing, education and criminal justice.
4. Global solidarity to confront modern slavery, including Islamophobia, anti-Black racism, and the persecution and genocide of Rohingya, Uyghurs, Kashmiris, Palestinians and other minorities.

Justice For All is a faith-based human rights organization accredited at the United Nations. We are dedicated to combating genocide and protecting the human rights of religious and ethnic minorities, including through our Black Justice Advocacy Campaign.