The United Nations General Assembly recognises slavery as the gravest crime against humanity and calls for reparations. But the European Union abstains.
Brussels, Belgium – 26 March 2026
On 25 March 2026, the United Nations General Assembly voted on a resolution titled “Permanent remembrance of the victims of the transatlantic slave trade and calls for reparative justice”, recognising the transatlantic slave trade as one of the gravest crimes against humanity, and demanding for reparations. The resolution was adopted with 123 votes in favour, 3 against (the United States, Israel, and Argentina), and 52 abstentions – including all 27 members of the European Union
This outcome once again exposes the gap between political commitments and meaningful action on racial justice.
A significant number of EU Member States chose to abstain.
This abstention is not neutral. It reflects a continued reluctance to confront Europe’s historical and ongoing role in structural racism. The transatlantic slave trade was not only a historical atrocity – it is foundational to the inequalities that persist today. Its legacies shape global economic systems and racial hierarchies that still disadvantage racialised communities across Europe and beyond.
The EU has committed, through the EU Anti-Racism Action Plan 2020-2025 and the EU Anti-Racism Strategy 2026-2030, to tackling racism in all its forms, including structural and institutional racism. However, as highlighted in our press statement from January 2026, these commitments risk remaining symbolic if they are not matched by political courage.
Justifications by the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations in New York suggesting that reparations are inconsistent with international law and therefore not owed because the transatlantic slave trade was not illegal under international law at the time must also be firmly rejected. Legality does not equate justice. Systems of law have historically enabled and legitimised racial violence, exploitation, and dehumanisation. To rely on the legality of slavery in its time is to ignore the very structures of power and racism that made such “legality” possible in the first place.
This position contradicts the EU’s anti-racism framework which recognises that historical systems of oppression matter, implying that no accountability is required for harms produced under past “legal” systems.
Failing to acknowledge the full gravity of the transatlantic trading in Africans – and resisting calls for reparative justice – undermines the credibility of the EU’s anti-racism agenda. It sends a troubling message to racialised communities: that historical accountability and justice remain negotiable.
Addressing racism in Europe requires more than policy frameworks. It demands honest reckoning, recognition of harm, and concrete steps toward repair.
Without this, the promise of the EU’s anti-racism strategy will remain unfulfilled.
