Scottish slavery: Clergyman campaigning to expose Scotland's links to slave trade

Reverend Yousouf Gooljary is looking to spark a national conversation on Scotland's historical links to slavery by investigating connections between rural churches and how their foundations were laid upon money accrued from the slave trade.

Gooljary has previously made headlines by highlighting the link between St John’s Episcopal Church on Princes Street in Edinburgh and profits from the East India Trading Company, whose business model relied heavily on slave labour. This resulted in the church acknowledging the issue and researching its history to help educate young people on the darker side of the building’s history.

The reverend is now building on that success by highlighting similar historical links on Islay, where the village and churches on the island were developed through money raised by Daniel Campbell. Campbell's main profits came from the shipping and sale of tobacco and sugar, both commodities produced by enslaved people. However, Gooljary claims there is evidence that he also traded in slaves.

Gooljary is also looking to connect his efforts across religious denominations. A member of the Iona community and reverend in the Scottish Episcopal Church, Gooljary has been working with the board of trustees of the Iona Cathedral to bring a motion to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in May for them to acknowledge historical links between their buildings and slavery.

Gooljary is hoping for the Church of Scotland to look into and research the thousands of buildings it owns across Scotland to understand its legacy as it pertains to the slave trade.

READ MORE: Rwanda refugee plans will end Channel crossings, PM hopes

Speaking on the cultural value of understanding Scotland’s past to slavery, Gooljary said: “The issue is about Scottish heritage, its colonial past and understanding where that heritage has come from.

“It’s really important today for diversity issues, for participation and citizenship of all people to show that you acknowledge your heritage and the suffering that has gone on for all the damage caused to people in the past.

“Scottish people are very proud of their land, buildings and history but if you don't tell the whole history, and you miss something out then it's not truthful. So it's about adhering to the truth of the past and that helps us today.”

Acknowledging that the scope of Scotland’s relationship with slavery exceeds the bounds of religious architecture, Gooljary is setting his sights on a wider cultural discussion at the national level.

He said: “If you look at the whole of Scotland, the estates of Argyll and all the other estates around the Highlands and everywhere else, they are completely linked to slavery plantation ownership. So the wealth of Scotland and its development is fundamentally rooted in this heritage.

“And so it's a much, much bigger question than just the churches because you've got the monuments to the people, you've got the buildings and then you've got the land and the only people who can really address this at this kind of level is the Scottish Government.”

While Gooljary has welcomed some of the progress that has been made - citing the example of the reconsideration of Glasgow’s street names in the Merchant City - he says a more holistic strategy is required, rather than the current “piecemeal” approach.

Gooljary is now calling on the Scottish Government to set up a commission “to look into the whole aspect of this legacy of slavery in relation to all lands, estates, buildings and monuments in Scotland.”