Dutch Anti-Slavery Group Burn Photocopies of Lawrence Hill's "Book of Negroes" Cover Over its Title

Dutch protesters burn photocopies of cover of Lawrence Hill's "Book of Negroes" or "Het Negerboek" over its title.

The Federation for Honor and Reparation of Slavery in Suriname, a Dutch anti-slavery group, has followed through on its threat to symbolically burn a copy of Canadian author Lawrence Hill's "Book of Negroes" because of its title, which is "Het Negerboek" in Dutch. The group, based in Amsterdam, burned the book cover on Wednesday in Oosterpark, according to the Star.

The Book of Negroes is the title of an actual historical document which documents the migration of 3,000 African slaves who supported the British cause in the American Revolution and were allowed to go from New York to Nova Scotia. Many of them later returned to Africa.

“The title is not intended to be offensive, but. . . to shed light on a forgotten document and on a forgotten migration, that of thousands of blacks from the USA to Canada in 1783,” Hill wrote Groenberg in reply. Source

The title of the book was changed in the U.S. and Australia to "Someone Knows My Name." It seems that nobody wanted to touch the book under its original title. But I have to wonder what took this anti-slavery group so long to come out in protest against the book. After all, it was published in 2008. Besides, since when is the word "negro" taboo? The book was not offensive in the least and it is really disturbing that "burning" photocopies of the cover is the only way they could stage a protest. Read more about "Someone Knows My Name."