Slave and Torture Theme Park
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Could something so deeply disturbing on so many levels and politically incorrect actually be right? A former Colorado couple is striving to open a theme park where you can play slave for a day and be tortured for 12 hours at ‘Memory Village,’ where guilt ridden visitors can attempt to come to terms with centuries of their forefather’s brutality by taking on the role of a slave which involves kidnapping, shackles and psychological torture — the entire gamut.
Photo Sume
Americans Ron and Carla Bluntschli, who live in Haiti — the world’s first black republic — have set up a foundation to get Memory Village off the ground and have already raised enough money to buy half of the 3 acres needed for their attraction.
As a slave you would be dressed in traditional African clothing, ‘kidnapped from Africa’, shackled, chained and forced to march to a slave ship, and piled in as cargo for the crossing of the Atlantic.
Once the ship reached the New World, the participants would be brought to market and sold, then broken down with torture in the quarantine and put to work out on the plantation.
Prior to being the world’s first black republic, Haiti was a slave nation. Quarantines were held where new slaves were broken down, beaten physically, made to feel inferior and told to be thankful to their captors — doing as their masters bid for work would lead to forgiveness and acceptance into heaven.
More than 200 years after the slaves revolted, the Bluntschlis now want to commemorate the quarantine, which they believe is the source of the Western world’s violence, racism and greed. “Our culture, our society did that.” says Carla Bluntschli, who has lived in Haiti for 22 years. “And I’m a part of it.”
Photo El Marco
While living in Haiti, the Bluntschlis were involved in fact-finding missions for human-rights organizations, realizing that both Haitians and foreigners lacked an understanding of how slavery had shaped today’s world, where descendants of Europeans are still wealthy and descendants of slaves are still poor.
Upon moving there, Carla quickly discovered that Haitian natives view themselves as inferior to whites. While walking through a market with a group of white people, a vendor told Carla she was walking amongst children of God. When she inquired who the Haitian people were, the vendor answered that they were the “children of Satan.”
Much to her amazement, hair straightening and skin lightening products are in high demand in a country with very little money for hygiene.
In 1999, Ari Nicolas approached the Bluntschlis with his vision of their future — Memory Village — a slavery theme park to journey back to the past where the first stop would be the world before colonization, including both the African and Native American empires that the colonists had destroyed.
Visitors would choose to be spectators or participants during a twelve-hour day. Partakers would don traditional African clothing, kidnapped from their homelands, shackled, chained and forced to march to the slave ship, where they’d be piled in as cargo for the crossing of the Atlantic.
Once the ship reached the New World, the participants would be brought to market and sold, then broken down in the quarantine and put to work out on the plantation. Near the end of the day, a slave rebellion would begin which would lead to the establishment of Haiti.
The Abolition of Slavery – A Abolizão da Escravatura, Museum of Naivistic Art,
Río de Janeiro, Brazil. Photo Hanneorla
“The breath that I take, the blood that runs in my body, is all in debt to that history.” Carla says. “Slavery is a terrible wound. Germany is still suffering from the Holocaust and trying to get over it, and this is a Holocaust that happened for centuries.”
Carla says she feels indebted to Haiti for beginning the end to slave trade.
The couple has invested money they had earned from street performances on slavery in the US and their retirement funds, but have not yet come up with the $700,000 in funding they anticipate will be needed to get the project off the ground.
Even so, the foundation has been recognized by the Haitian government.
Sources: Metro and Denver Westword
Tags:Haiti Memory Village slave slave trade slavery slaves theme parks torture
This is totally pathetic. The message could be driven without having to go through that historical misery. Besides, it could rekindle hate rather than understanding, or misguided corrective measures.
This is the kind of approach that is being done by jihadists. The oppression and inequality have spawned a whole generation of violence-oriented people where their leaders use fundamental religious beliefs as a means to exact justice.
The initiative may be noble, but to make people understand slavery via experiential learning with all the attendant cruelties is a bit too much. I understood my country’s oppression by Spain, the US, and Japan by studying and analyzing history. That’s all it takes. –Durano, done!
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You have got to be kidding. I’m not with it. Going to a slavery theme park is just strange. I think I saw a comic skit like that on “Mad TV”.
Hmmm. Sounds a bit twisted in logic to me. A 12 hour day of being shackled and beaten? Sounds like a long day to me. Must be an expensive theme Park too. Of course, if I really wanted to purge my supposed “White mans guilt”, I could always visit the local Dominatrix and get whipped, handcuffed and called names there. She only charges by the hour and there’s usually a “Happy ending” involved.
(or so I’ve heard)…..wink, wink.
Durano, I’m with you 100%. I find this deeply disturbing. ‘Experimental learning’ … that’s a very good way to put it. I’m sure their intentions are good, but 12 hours of re-enactment is just over the top, and I’m of the same mind that it will only work to rekindle anomosity.
Paul, I think that’s even over the top for Mad Tv, it’s just wrong.
Hahaha, you always come ahead with something that makes me laugh Nitropuppy, even from a topic such as this. Yes, I’m sure your knowledge on S & M is all from hearsay
This is totally disgusting and the haitians should be offended not welcoming this garbage. If they really felt guilty they could have issued an apology, and then proceeded to get to know the haitians better. They could even start up a foundation that gives back to the haitians. This is totally offensive in so many ways, but since I live in America not Haiti, I guess they will deal with this their own way. Not only is this insensitive, but it causes further talk of what happened in history to be ignored. Now whites will go to the theme park, get treated like a slave for a few hours, and then go home only to talk about how they feel so ‘relieved’ from their guilt. Why not just talk to a therapist if you are feeling guilty? Why not fight to actually change things, instead of creating a stupid theme park. What is wrong with human beings these days?
Yes this does seem a bit extreme..they are going about it the wrong way. I am a Hatian and i am actually quite shocked to hear this. The whole idea is ridiculous first of 12 hours of being treated like a slave does not accomplish anything, and furthermore after that you cannot just go back home and feel good about it. Haiti was the first Black republic, but now it is also the poorest country in the western hemisphere. Instead of coming up with ridiculous things like this, they should be focusing on helping the country. This is disgusting
To say they’re going about it the wrong way is a great understatement, Robert. It’s indeed disgusting.
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