Barbados and the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade

After a brief look at the demographic and economic circumstances of Barbados during the period of slavery when distinctive Barbadian patterns were established, this article examines the various methods used by three entities in Barbados to commemorate the bicentenary. These are: agencies of the Government of Barbados, the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies and the Barbados Museum. Comparative material was also used from the islands of Dominica, St Lucia and St Vincent. Through interviews and surveys, public opinion was sought regarding these activities. The consensus was that the commemorative activities were muted for a variety of reasons. Furthermore, the meaning of 1807 was subsumed/relegated in the public consciousness by an overarching tendency to collapse/merge this date with 1834, which had greater significance.