Strasbourg – November 05, 2026 -- The 90-minute documentary "The Slavery Network: Tracing a Dark Legacy" streams on arte.tv from December 1 and airs on TV at 8:15 p.m. the same day. It is a first broadcast.
The film follows money from Ghana and the Caribbean to three European cities
Directors Sarah Vianney and Martin Carazo Mendez trace financial flows from the past into the present. The route runs from Ghana and the Caribbean to Liverpool, Nantes and Berlin. The film shows how widely Europe profited from slavery, which it describes as both one of history's greatest crimes and a global economic system.
Historians and descendants on both sides question responsibility
Historians, descendants of enslaved people and descendants of former profiteers ask about responsibility, remembrance and justice. The film arrives as the debate over reparations gains momentum in Europe, Africa and the Caribbean. It asks who benefited and how far the exploitation still reverberates today.
The production is a German 2026 co-production by ZDF and ARTE, Gruppe 5.