RICHMOND, Va. – The Run Richmond 16.19, organized by Oscar-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou, led runners throughout the city to honor the achievements of African Americans in Virginia.
Runners on the symbolic 16.19 kilometer course, which was just over 10 miles, experienced the places where enslaved Africans took their first steps on American soil after being brought to Richmond.
Saturday's run was part of the Africa Reconnect series being held by the Djimon Hounsou Foundation.
“I was forced to stop many times along the tracks and to sort of look at the scenery – the ground on which my ancestors walked centuries ago,” Hounsou said. “It’s nice to do a little stop and look at the setting.”
Richmond was the largest slave-trading center in the Upper South, according to theVirginia Museum of History & Culture. It is estimated that up to 2 million people were sold from Richmond to the Deep South. In 1860 there were 550,000 enslaved Black people living in Virginia.
Richmond was the first stop for the 16.19 event. The run will also be held in Liverpool in the United Kingdom and in West Africa. All were important areas during thetransatlantic slave trade.
READ MORE: Visualizing the Richmond Slave Trade
