This monument is dedicated to the 500 hundred years of suffering through slavery and exploitation. Because until now there has not been given much importance to this kind of memorial, I think it cannot be located near another construction that could reduce its value. Therefore, it will be located on the East Coast, somewhere near Washington DC. The Monument attempts to help you understand what these years symbolize through a crumbled path. So, the first part represents the boarding and route to the New World, a very difficult route during which a lot of people get sick or even die. That is why this segment is made out of piles of concrete which get thicker and thicker, until you can see what is happening outside, but you are already trapped and have no escape. The second part is a tunnel where you do not have natural light and which switches direction frequently. This represents the hard years of slavery, with many sufferings – real “dark years”. The walls are covered with black mirrors that reflects us all the same, no matter what color we are. This path to freedom ends with natural steps that open to the ocean, into the sunrise. Therefore, you look back into the past, but you see a new beginning, reflecting upon the ancestors that experienced the horror of the Middle Passage. Here the Sunrise Ceremony (Maafa) could take place, where people gather on the beach to greet the sun and the spirits of the ancestors. This monument represents a moment of silence in a life of noise and chaos. It is from here that you start your journey and follow the path to freedom through the sufferings that your ancestors once bore. The end will find you reflecting upon what happened in the past and upon what it will not happen in the future. The grey begins to fade, As colour creeps from leaf to limb. The light is slowly seeping up, From beneath the earth's curved rim. Jacqui Thornton