Heirs of Enslavement

Clive Lewis sits down with Grenada's Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell for a wide-ranging conversation on the local and international politics of reparatory justice.

From Grenada's own history to their relationship with China, what an agreement could mean for the NHS, to how money is loaned on the international stage, PM Mitchell gives frank and thoughtful answers to the themes that have cropped up throughout Heirs of Enslavement. 

Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Edwin Frank

Production Manager: Flick Heath

Original music: Andre Greenidge

Score and artwork: Sena Verdi

Sound design: Airaphon

This is a Persephonica Production.

This is the story of how two Heirs of Enslavement - Clive Lewis MP, a descendent of the enslaved, and Laura Trevelyan, of the enslaver - can come together to right the wrongs of the past.

In this first episode, Clive and Laura travel to Grenada - the island of their shared history - to explore the past of their families with two special guests: Clive’s dad, Tony Lewis, and Laura’s close friend and historian, Nicole Phillip-Dowe. As they delve into how they both came to this issue, they’re asking why reparatory justice is a conversation now, how their involvement can help, and what the future could look like.

Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Edwin Frank

Production Manager: Flick Heath

Original music: Andre Greenidge

Score and artwork: Sena Verdi

Sound design: Airaphon

This is a Persephonica Production.

In this final episode of Heirs of Enslavement, Clive Lewis and Laura Trevelyan are reflecting on everything they’ve learned, and asking, what will happen next? Will a British government face up to the case for reparations? And if not, what could happen instead?

They speak to Financial Times columnist Stephen Bush, lawyer Jacqueline McKenzie and Grenada’s Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell about the outlook for an agreement between the Caribbean and the United Kingdom. Plus, they hear from businessman Denis O’Brien about some of the progress being made in the West Indies. 

Clive and Laura’s reading list:

Britain’s Black Debt by Hilary McD. Beckles

The First Black Slave Society by Hilary McD. Beckles

How Britain Underdeveloped the Caribbean by Hilary McD. Beckles

Capitalism and Slavery by Eric Williams

Junior History of Grenada by Dr. Nicole Phillip-Dowe

The Interesting Narrative and Other Writings by Olaudah Equiano

Empireland by Sathnam Sanghera

Slave Empire by Padraic. X. Scanlan

Uncommon Wealth by Kojo Koram

Legacy of Violence by Caroline Elkins

Paradise and Plantation by Ian Gregory Strachan

Beyond a Boundary by C. L. James

A to Z of Grenada Heritage by John Angus Martin

African Europeans by Olivette Otele

A Short History of Slavery by James Walvin

The Case for Reparations (article in The Atlantic) by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Edwin Frank

Production Manager: Flick Heath

Original music: Andre Greenidge

Score and artwork: Sena Verdi

Sound design: Airaphon

This is a Persephonica Production.

The West Indies is looking to the UK government for reparations, so this week, Clive Lewis and Laura Trevelyan are heading back to London, to understand the link between the Caribbean and Britain. It’s time to revisit the history of the Windrush generation - the men and women who travelled to Britain for work and to help rebuild after World War Two. Clive talks to his dad about his experience, and Professor Olivette Otele explains how the treatment of the Windrush generation adds to the call for reparations. 

With that in mind, Laura and Clive are keen to know what the reparatory justice movement looks like in London. Clive’s Labour colleague Bell Ribeiro-Addy, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for Afrikan Reparations, shares her insights. 

Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Edwin Frank

Production Manager: Flick Heath

Original music: Andre Greenidge

Score and artwork: Sena Verdi

Sound design: Airaphon

This is a Persephonica Production.

Clive Lewis and Laura Trevelyan have heard what Grenada and the Caribbean islands want reparatory justice to address, but now it’s time to find out whether any of those issues are moving forward. 

There’s one policy area that’s seeing more development than any other in terms of global support - and that’s climate resilience. In this episode, Laura and Clive hear about why the West Indies is at particular risk in a warmer world, and how a plan designed by Barbados could offer a solution that brings reparations and climate planning together.

Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Edwin Frank

Production Manager: Flick Heath

Original music: Andre Greenidge

Score and artwork: Sena Verdi

Sound design: Airaphon

This is a Persephonica Production.