Amsterdam mayor apologizes for city fathers' role in slavery ALEKSANDAR FURTULA and MIKE CORDER, Associated Press July 1, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail 20 1of20Mayor Femke Halsema apologized for the involvement of the city's rulers in the slave trade during a nationally televised annual ceremony in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Thursday, July 1, 2021, marking the abolition of slavery in its colonies in Suriname and the Dutch Antilles on July 1, 1863. The anniversary is now known as Keti Koti, which means Chains Broken. Debate about Amsterdam's involvement in the slave trade has been going on for years and gained attention last year amid the global reckoning with racial injustice that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year.Peter Dejong/APShow MoreShow Less