Guardian owner heralds next phase in Legacies of Enslavement restorative justice plan

The owner of the Guardian has announced the next phase of its 10-year restorative justice plan to address and atone for the news organisation’s historical links to transatlantic enslavement.

The Scott Trust launched the Legacies of Enslavement programme in 2023, acknowledging that the founder of the Manchester Guardian, and his backers, profited from the enslavement of African people in Jamaica and the US.

Three years on from the launch, the Scott Trust said it had made “significant progress”, following hundreds of community engagement meetings, expanding Guardian coverage of the global Black diaspora and schemes to improve media diversity.

The plan (pdf), for 2026-2030, promises to build on the programme’s initial commitments and sets out how it will continue to pursue restorative justice and meaningful repair.

Over the next four years the Scott Trust will invest in supporting the priorities identified by the descendant communities in Hanover, Jamaica, and the US Sea Islands, allocating several million UK pounds through partnerships with community led organisations and institutions.

These include improving access to quality education and skills training; supporting community land and property rights; funding economic and climate justice initiatives; convening community conversations centred on repair and healing and helping to preserve cultural heritage and honour the memories of those who were enslaved.

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, the programme manager for Manchester, who was appointed in September 2024. The team, led by Ebony Riddell Bamber, has conducted open town hall meetings in the US Sea Islands and Jamaica, as well as sought opinion with community members, reparations experts, civil society and institutions.

In Jamaica, the programme is assisting the community in Hanover with reconstruction efforts after . In Manchester, where the Guardian was founded, work is under way on a landmark exploring the city’s relationship with cotton and enslavement to be launched in early 2027 in partnership with the , as well as convening grassroots groups to support broader work.