ST. EUSTATIUS is facing renewed debate over plans to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the First Salute on November 16th.
The St. Eustatius Afrikan Burial Ground Alliance and other concerned descendants are calling on the Dutch government to relocate the event from Statia to The Hague.
The First Salute marks the 1776 recognition of the United States, but the Alliance argues the commemoration does not adequately confront the island’s history of slavery.
The group points in particular to then-Governor Johannes de Graaff, whom it describes as a major enslaver, and says the event risks celebrating a historical narrative that many descendants view as painful and incomplete.
The Alliance is also criticizing spending connected to the commemoration and is calling for greater investment in historical research and community priorities.
A petition has now been launched seeking relocation of the event.
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