The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dutch government engages with local Black businesses
After nation’s slavery apology, ambassador visits.
what our role was in the past,” Tazelaar said during a breakfast for local Black businesses at the Russell Innovation Center for Entre- preneurs (RICE), a nonprofit that works to support local Black businesses.
The Dutch ambassador to After the apologies, the the United States, Birgitta Dutch people asked the gov- Tazelaar, was in Atlanta on ernment what it was going Wednesday to address the to do now, according to Jaap Netherlands’ role in slavery Veerman, the Dutch Consul and engage with local Black General in Atlanta. businesses as her country Part of what the local con- works to deepen its relation- sulate decided to do was ship with the Black commu- co-host the event at RICE nity in the city. with the Atlanta chapter of
Tazelaar’s visit came as the Global Shapers Commuthe Netherlands works to nity, a network born out of acknowledge its past. In late the influential World Eco- 2022, the Dutch prime min- nomic Forum. The breakfast ister formally apologized for was catered by local Black- the nation’s role in slavery owned tea company Just and last July, Dutch King Wil- Add Honey. lem-Alexander also apolo“I want to recognize the gized, highlighting that more importance of the Black com- than 600,000 people were munity here in Atlanta,” transported across the Atlan- Veerman told the audience. tic on Dutch ships. He also “I also want to recognize acknowledged the slave trade the importance of the Black in areas controlled by the entrepreneurship here in Dutch East India Company Atlanta for the Southeast, for and the atrocities committed the United States, but also against the indigenous peo- for the rest of the world.” ple in the former colonies. Veerman said the consul-
“If we want to share a ate wanted to learn from future, we have to share our the local Black community past and we have to reckon on how to fight discrimina- as the Netherlands (with) tion and “work together on projects (such) as social jus- America. I think it’s going tice, minorities and housing, to be extremely difficult.” minorities and education, The Netherlands has also and minorities and health been reckoning with the raccare.” ism that still exists in its soci
Economic diplomacy is ety. After the 2020 murder of a focus of the consulate, so George Floyd in Minneapolis, Veerman and Tazelaar were Minnesota, the Dutch Minalso pitching the Netherlands istry of Foreign Affairs comas an opportunity for local missioned an external invesbusinesses. tigation on racism within
Veerman said the consul- its ranks. The report found ate wanted to bring a dele- that staff members of color gation of Black businesses experienced verbal abuse, to the Netherlands some- derogatory treatment and time in the fall, which would were sometimes not conlikely be a first for the coun- sidered truly Dutch. try, according to Tazelaar. In speaking about the
But funding Black busi- report, Tazelaar noted a nesses specifically isn’t a part microaggression she had of the Netherlands’ apology committed against a colso far. Tazelaar called rep- league of Moroccan descent, arations “a loaded term.” saying she was surprised
When an audience mem- when he told her he prayed ber asked Tazelaar if the five times a day. Netherlands planned on giv“I had preconceived ing funding to support Black notions that he had become and brown businesses oper- a Dutch person that had ating in the Netherlands as maybe said goodbye to his part of the apology for slav- religion,” Tazelaar said. “It’s ery, she said she didn’t think ignorance.” the country was there yet.
“I think it is extremely, extremely difficult to trans- late an apology into funding because where do you start?”
Tazelaar said. “You’ve got
Indonesia, you’ve got coun- tries in Africa, you’ve got
America, you’ve got Latin