Today is Keti Koti. We commemorate and celebrate the abolition of slavery in the former Dutch colonies. Every year on June 30th, the evening before the Keti Koti celebrations, an official commemoration ceremony takes place in Rotterdam at the Rotterdam slavery monument. On behalf of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR), Prof. Jantine Schuit, our Rector Magnificus, and Prof. Jacco van Sterkenburg, our Chief Diversity Officer, laid a wreath.
In addition, EUR colleagues and students attended the Keti Koti commemoration programme at Theater Zuidplein yesterday evening. During ‘Gevoelige Snaar: Keti Koti’ by House Of Carrot, artists shared personal stories in an intimate living-room setting, through live music performances, spoken word and conversations: about cultural roots and the way the past continues to shape the present. The event explored and discussed how freedom is experienced, fought for, celebrated and how, in some cases, freedom is still restricted.
The programme invited the audience to listen, watch and feel, but also to engage in open dialogue: with themselves, with the artists and with the people around them. “It was a beautiful and meaningful way to commemorate Keti Koti, and I found it valuable to have been there together with EUR colleagues and students.” - Joris van den Ring-Bax, communications specialist at IDEA Center.
Today, on July 1st, there are various activities taking place in Rotterdam to celebrate Keti Koti. Commemorating and celebrating are of great importance - together, we are working towards a more inclusive and just future.
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