Racers in the Slave Route Challenge retrace the footsteps of Cape Town’s historical journey

The legacy of slavery in Africa is deeply connected to race: the oppression of people based solely on the color of their skin.

Today, the painful history of slavery is being commemorated through a race of a very different nature in Cape Town, South Africa.

The Slave Route Challenge follows the path once walked by those enslaved as they entered the former colony, connecting landmarks from a dark era in the nation’s past.

The trade of enslaved people from Africa and Asia to the Cape began in the 1600s and continued until slavery was abolished in Cape Town in 1834.

The first race in 2011 saw 2,000 participants, growing to 8,000 this year. The route passes significant landmarks like the whipping post and the Castle of Good Hope, ultimately concluding at the Grand Parade, once a site for slave auctions – a poignant finish to an educational journey.

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“I started the Slavery Challenge mainly to shine a light on the rich heritage embedded in Cape Town,” says Farouk Meyer, the event organizer and native of the city.

“It’s a history that’s largely concealed from view,” he says about slavery’s past in the city. On the route, traces of slavery are faint; some sites reveal little to nothing at all.

As part of the tribute, runners wear a bib bearing the name of a slave, emphasizing that each enslaved person was an individual with their own identity.

The race, ranging from 6.2 to 1 miles, guides participants through Bo-Kaap, one of Cape Town’s oldest neighborhoods and a hub of the city’s immigrant heritage.

Bo-Kaap, famed for its vibrant houses, cobbled streets, and large Muslim community, has been known as Cape Malay for centuries. The area’s origins date back to the 16th century, when immigrants, enslaved people from Asia and India, and political exiles from Indonesia were forced to settle there by Dutch colonists.

“These exiles were actually nobility,” explains Thania Pietersen, whose ancestors helped establish Bo-Kaap. “They were royal, educated, and highly influential… but because they posed a threat, they were exiled here, far from their homelands and families.”

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Five centuries later, Pietersen’s legacy endures through music and dance. Minstrel performances – distinct from their American counterparts, which were rooted in racial caricatures – unite Bo-Kaap’s community in a lively street celebration known as “Tweede Nuwe Jaar,” or “Second New Year.”

It is believed that Tweede Nuwe Jaar originated as the day when Malay slaves were granted time off, since their masters celebrated the New Year on January 1st.

Much like New Orleans’ Mardi Gras or London’s Notting Hill Carnival, this vibrant event is a bold expression of civic pride. Dressed in bright costumes and playing a variety of instruments, the carnival proudly defies the notion that colonial powers could erase the cultures that settled in Bo-Kaap.

“Pride is incredibly important,” says Pietersen. “When you strip people of their pride, you take away a part of their essence… it’s essential for the survival of the human spirit.”

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