The Consul General in Bermuda [fr]
The Consul General visited Bermuda on October 11 and 12. This British overseas territory is the fourth territory of the Consular District of New York.
During this first visit to Bermuda, the Consul General met with the Governor of the archipelago, Rena Lalgie, and the Premier, David Burt, to discuss ways to intensify relations between France and Bermuda. Nicole Haziza, Honorary Consul of France in Hamilton, facilitated and organized this visit. Her work is admirable.
- The Consul General of France in New York, Jérémie Robert, with Rena Lalgie, Governor of Bermuda, and Nicole Haziza, Honorary Consul of France in Hamilton
- The Consul General of France in New York, Jérémie Robert, with David Burt, Premier of Bermuda
The Consul General also met with the French community in Bermuda, whose members are particularly active in the fields of economics, tourism and the protection of marine biodiversity. He proceeded to a ceremony of delivery of the nationality booklet in favor of a new compatriot.
- Mrs. Benedicte Ivey received the French nationality
During the visit of the Bermuda National Gallery, presided by Gary Philipps, a French-speaking and Francophile Bermudian, the Consul General noted the cultural dynamism of the archipelago and the importance of the memory of slavery and segregation, abolished on the island in 1963.
The story of Mary Prince, a slave born in Bermuda at the end of the 18th century to parents from the French West Indies from whom she was separated at the age of 12, marks the collective memory of the inhabitants, including the younger generations. Sold many times, she became free in 1828 when, accompanying her masters on a trip to England, she escaped and found refuge in anti-abolitionist circles. The publication of her life story in 1831 was decisive on the evolution of British opinion on slavery and the adoption of the 1833 Abolition Act.
In 2014, Alex Descas brought this story to the stage of the Manufacture des Abbesses, in Paris, with Souri Adèle, an actress from Martinique, in the role of Mary Prince.