Bristol, Slavery and I
Marius Aznar
A look at Bristol’s historic links with slavery through Spanish eyes.
Transcript
I came to Bristol with my wife Sandra just one year ago. We left our life, our friends and family in Spain to start a risky adventure in England. It was the start of a new life, new jobs, new people and a new home. We chose Bristol because somebody in Spain told us how nice the city was. Now Bristol is my second home, a place that I will never forget.
After having spent one year of my life here, I started to get to know Bristol, its hidden places and its history. It was an exciting surprise for me.
A few months ago there was a controversy between the developers of the new commercial centre and the human and civil rights organizations in Bristol about the possible name of the new development in the city. One of the names proposed was Merchants Quarter, but this referred to a wealthy group of men who were involved in the slave trade from 200 years ago.
This made me realize that the city has a dark past, connected to slavery. Reading about it, I felt sad because of the cruelty of those days. Between 9 and 11 million slaves were taken from Africa to America, and between 1 and 2 million died on the way.
Soon people in Britain realised how terrible that was, and tried to stop it. Finally, the slave trade was banned but you can still see the links with this history at Pero’s Bridge, the Georgian House,
One day I was asked how I would like Bristol to be in the future. Thinking about it I came to the conclusion that the nicest image for the future of Bristol could be as a pioneering city in diversity, culture, human and civil rights. An example for the whole world as a vibrant and tolerant city, and one that respects all races, and cultures. That’s what would make me feel proud of calling this my second home.
