The Church of England is confronting legal opposition to Project Spire, a £100m reparative justice initiative designed to address the institution’s historical involvement in enslavement. The project was established following research into Queen Anne’s Bounty, an endowment fund dating to 1704 that had invested in the South Sea Company, which transported over 34,000 enslaved people. The fund also received donations from individuals connected to the enslaving trade.
Church leadership has defended Project Spire as necessary reparative work. Daniel Matovu, a barrister representing the diocese of Oxford, stated the church had not only profited from slavery but supported and participated in it. He indicated that research suggests the church generated approximately £5m annually in current monetary value from directly operating sugar plantations in Barbados across more than a century, totaling around £640m. Graham Usher, the bishop of Norwich, acknowledged the inadequacy of financial measures to address historical harms but characterized Project Spire as an important beginning.
The initiative has drawn criticism from conservative political figures and think tanks, with some questioning whether funds should be allocated differently. A separate organization, the Anglican missionary body USPG, launched its own £7m reparative justice project in 2024 after apologizing for operating two plantations where thousands of enslaved people worked. Church officials confirmed that Project Spire is subject to ongoing legal proceedings but declined to disclose details about the challenge or its origins. Officials also reported that Church Commissioners staff have received hostile communications while working on the project.
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Article summary produced by Claude AI