The Scott Trust has announced the next stage of its 10-year Legacies of Enslavement programme, detailing new actions to address and atone for the Guardian’s historical links to transatlantic enslavement.
Launched in 2023, the programme acknowledges that the founder of the Manchester Guardian, John Edward Taylor, and his backers profited from transatlantic enslavement through their business interests in cotton and sugar. Among them was Sir George Philips, co-owner of the Success plantation in Hanover, Jamaica. Links were also identified between Taylor’s family business and plantations in the Gullah Geechee region of the US Sea Islands, says The Scott Trust.
Three years on, the 2026-2030 plan builds on the programme’s initial commitments and sets out how the programme will continue to pursue restorative justice and meaningful repair, the Scott Trust continued.
Over the next four years, the Scott Trust says it will invest in supporting the priorities identified by descendant communities in Jamaica and the US Sea Islands. In both regions the programme has developed a comprehensive set of priorities that contribute to realising repair, including:
- Improving access to quality education and skills training
- Supporting community land and property rights
- Helping to preserve cultural heritage preservation and honouring the memories of those who were enslaved
- Funding economic and climate justice initiatives
- Convening community conversations centred on repair and healing.
Some work is already ongoing, for example, in Jamaica, The Scott Trust says the programme is assisting the community in Hanover parish with reconstruction efforts post Hurricane Melissa.
According to The Scott Trust this next phase of plans have been designed to reinforce the programme’s commitment to restorative justice and truth-telling in the UK and globally. This includes sharing new academic research, raising awareness of the UK’s role in transatlantic enslavement and its enduring impact, and increasing accountability through the Guardian’s journalism and Cotton Capital series.
In Manchester, where the Guardian was founded, work is already underway on a landmark exhibition on Manchester, Cotton and Enslavement to be launched in early 2027 in partnership with the Science and Industry Museum.
Read the full 2026-2030 Legacies of Enslavement programme plan here, you can also read the executive summary here.
The Guardian is holding a free online event on Thursday 2 July, at 7:30pm (BST). The event will explore the programme's progress and challenges, featuring insights from reparatory justice experts and practitioners on how a media organisation can atone for a history linked to transatlantic enslavement. Click here for more information and to register.
The Guardian says it is also relaunching the monthly Cotton Capital newsletter, exploring legacies of enslavement and reparative justice around the world. Readers can sign-up to receive the newsletter directly in their inboxes.
Ole Jacob Sunde, chair of the Scott Trust, said: “The Scott Trust is deeply committed to this programme of restorative justice. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the journey so far. We are grateful to the descendant communities in Jamaica, the US and UK who have taken the time to share with us how we can make a meaningful impact in this next phase of the programme. I look forward to the work ahead.”
Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief, Guardian News & Media, says: “I am delighted to see the progress the Legacies of Enslavement team has made in confronting and atoning for the Guardian’s historic links to transatlantic enslavement , and I want to thank everyone who has helped shape the programme and bring it to life. This work has widened the lens of the Guardian’s journalism, diversified our team around the world and amplified stories from underrepresented communities and regions. As we enter this next phase of the plan, our focus is on making changes that are meaningful, significant and long-lasting to the lives of those affected.”
Ebony Riddell Bamber, programme director, the Scott Trust Legacies of Enslavement programme, says: “This is an exciting phase of the programme, where we deliver on visions of repair for transatlantic enslavement through partnership-building and providing resources and support. We have been received with such grace, openness and insight while we engaged in defining this work. If we have connected with you over these past few years, we hope you see your priorities in this plan. We look forward to collaborating with you to realise them.”
Ongoing engagement and relationship-building with descendant communities is central to the Legacies of Enslavement programme’s approach, with programme managers embedded within those communities leading the work. Ahmed Reid and Angel Parson have been appointed as programme managers to further the Guardian’s work in Jamaica and the US Sea Islands respectively. Reid and Parson join Keisha Thompson, programme manager for Manchester, who was appointed in September 2024.
The Guardian says the programme has made significant progress in its initial plans to atone over the last three years, this includes:
- Hiring new correspondents covering East and West Africa, the Caribbean, South America and expanding the Guardian’s race, health and community affairs teams in the UK and US
- Launching the Long Wave, a weekly newsletter delivering a dose of Black life and culture around the world
- Expanding bursary and traineeship schemes in the UK, US and Australia to help improve media diversity.
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