INVITE: The artwork for the Namibian documentary, A Story of Bones.
INVITE: The artwork for the Namibian documentary, A Story of Bones.

A story of bones

Restorative justice
A Story of Bones invites us to consider the history of the grounds upon which we stand, as well as the lives and deaths that came before us.
Otis Daniels
A Story of Bones, a Namibian documentary, is set to premiere at the Swakopmund Museum on 19 March at 18:00, followed by a Q&A session.

The film serves as an excellent outreach tool and would be of particular interest to people who want to explore topics such as enslavement, colonisation and diaspora, as well as cultural identity. It seeks to educate about activism and human rights defenders, crimes against humanity and war crimes, identity, peace and reconciliation, racism and/or discrimination, as well as slavery.

It also invites communities to discuss the experiences of enslaved Africans and their descendants. These conversations require learning truths about society, culture, and political motivations that typically have not been taught in schools.

Directed by Dominic Aubrey de Vere and Joseph Curran, the 90-minute “Call to Action” for change documentary is about the immense journey of individual agency and community action of two women, one Namibian and a resident of Swakopmund Annina van Neel, and the other an African American, Peggy King Jorde, who join forces across the Atlantic Ocean to protect the world’s most significant burial ground for enslaved Africans.

Van Neel has been working globally with disenfranchised communities that are seeking reconnection to their neglected and marginalised heritage. She is a 2023 Echoing Green Fellow, part of a global group of social innovators working towards a more equitable and just future.

Introducing the movement to protect and commemorate the African burial ground on Saint Helena, this film is a call to action for changing how African burial grounds and sites of conscience are treated and preserved and how descendant communities are listened to during the process.

As the construction environmental officer for Saint Helena’s troubled airport project, Van Neel learns about an unmarked mass burial ground of an estimated 9 000 formerly enslaved Africans. Haunted by this historical injustice, she and African American preservationist Peggy King Jorde fight for their proper memorialization, exposing the United Kingdom’s colonial past and present.

A second screening and Q&A session will be held at Namib Primary School Kaltur Aula on 20 March at 18:00.

This will be followed by a commemorative grave restoration at the Swakopmund Genocide Graves, led by Laidlwa Peringanda from the Swakopmund Genocide Museum, scheduled for 21 March at 09:00 at the Swakopmund Cemetery. A reception with the iconic Annina van Neel and Peggy King Jorde on 21 March from 18:00 to 20:00 at the Sound Garden will conclude the premier.

The A Story of Bones film team and The Tiekie Box Project expressed their profound appreciation for the generous support from Movies That Matter The Hague, The Swakopmund Genocide Museum, The Swakopmund Scientific Society, King Jorde Culturals, Echoing Green, The State of the African Diaspora, and a host of incredible individuals and organisations located around the world, vital to realising these events.

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