In 2009, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization decided there should be a permanent memorial established on the United Nations (UN) visitor’s grounds to honor the victims of slavery and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Named the Ark of Return, this was to be the first permanent memorial of any kind at the UN’s headquarters, which is located in New York City. The memorial was designed by Rodney Leon, an American architect of Haitian descent, and is the result of an international competition that attracted over 300 entries from 83 countries.
“The permanent memorial at the UN honors the memories of the estimated 15 million men, women and children who were victims of the largest forced migration in history,” said Jonathan Tibett, proprietor for ABC Stone in Brooklyn, NY. “Rodney was aware that ABC played an important role in other large-scale monumental installations, such as Antonio Pio Saracino’s Hero and Superhero in Bryant Park, and knew we had the experience to facilitate a project of this magnitude. It was a real honor to be chosen by Rodney to assist him in realizing his monument.”