Sirelda Jackson

Sirelda Jackson, of African ascent, is a lifelong Pan-African activist with extensive personal and professional experience. Her career spans nearly 40 years as an all-round trained social worker and project coordinator. She is skilled in counseling individuals, homeless youths, teenage mothers and their children, re-socializing young delinquents, and supporting families and community groups of Caribbean and African descent. Her work particularly focuses on coping with post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSS) related to psychological abuse and intergenerational trauma as a result of the legacy of slavery within the context of the Dutch Kingdom.

Her activism includes significant contributions to the Landelijk Platform Slavernijverleden (LPS) in the Netherlands, where she has been instrumental in raising awareness about the Dutch slavery past and its ongoing impact on descendants. She is also the Co-Founder and President of Plataforma Nacional Herencia di Sclavitud na Aruba (PNHSA), which aims to promote awareness, education, and emotional healing regarding the slavery history in Aruba. Additionally, Sirelda has participated in international forums such as the Accra Declaration, which focused on the African diaspora and reparations.

She continues to engage communities locally, regionally, and internationally through lectures, workshops, and dialogue forums on African civilization, human rights, and social justice. Her expertise encompasses African and Caribbean studies (history, cultures, philosophy, sociology, spirituality, and geopolitics).

In the past her entrepreneurial spirit was exemplified by her role as co-owner of an Afro-Caribbean restaurant that served as a platform for empowering marginalized African and Afro-Caribbean women. Sirelda is multilingual, speaking and understanding Papiamento, English, Dutch, Spanish, Sranan Tongo, French, Portuguese, and German.