Rotterdam Ontrafelt…

With more than 175 nationalities and a population of which more than half has a migrant background, Rotterdam is a vibrant melting pot of cultures, traditions and languages. This diverse city bears the traces of its colonial past, where 1 in 8 Rotterdam residents have ancestors who were once enslaved. A history that continues in the form of contemporary racism, discrimination and exclusion.

Rotterdam Ontrafelt…’ is a guided walking program in the middle of the city and, together with a team of two supervisors, a storyteller and workshop teacher, exposes the structures, backgrounds and references of centuries of colonialism through stories and illustrations. In addition to sharing knowledge, insights and anecdotes, this interactive program is an invitation to conversation to work together on a city where everyone feels at home.

Het Haringvliet (Oude Haven)
Against the historic backdrop of the Haringvliet, UrbanGuides delves into the colonial history of Rotterdam. The area where Rotterdam’s colonial slavery system, especially in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, came together. Here one found the West India Company, Admiralty on the Maze, sugar refineries, living and working locations of the Rotterdam colonial elite (including the infamous slave trader Jacob Coopstad) and colonial shipbuilding. But the area around the Haringvliet not only benefited, it was also the place where the first Rotterdam protests against this system manifested themselves. In short, an important part of Rotterdam history that tells us a lot about the present.

Land van Hoboken (Museumpark)
The former estate of Anthony van Hoboken, now better known as the Museum Park, represents other episodes of Rotterdam’s long colonial history. Despite other episodes and new systems, such as contract labor and the culture couple, making a lot of money through exploitation remained central. We will follow these hidden and overt traces of colonial history, but there are also other colonial connections to be made in the Museum Park. For example, the various museums in and around the Museum Park house collections that are full of references, stereotypes or works of art and objects from the colonies. How do museums deal with this legacy today? Economy, art and culture and history, it’s all covered in this walk about Rotterdam’s colonial past.

‘Rotterdam Ontrafelt…’ is very suitable for groups who want to enrich themselves with knowledge and insight about the impact of our history on today’s society.