Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan flew to Jamaica last week to celebrate the 19th anniversary of his Million Man March on the U.S. Capitol in 1995. He wasted little time in urging Caribbean trade bloc nations to fight Europe to pay the region for the trans-Atlantic slave trade, even asking them not to forget the genocidal role of the Roman Catholic Church during that era.

Farrakhan, 81, spent more than an hour on the stage of the island’s national arena Sunday at the end of a near weeklong visit to Jamaica, where his father, Percival Clark was born. His mom, Mae Manning Clark, hailed from St. Kitts.

In his usual fiery and vibrant style, Farrakhan paid particular attention to the role of the Catholic Church during the slave trade, urging regional governments and national committees preparing a case to sue Britain and other European nations for the African holocaust to ensure that the pope and his men are not left out of any lawsuit or action.

“When you talk about reparation, you can’t leave the pope out. There was something in the Catholic Church called the papal bulls authorizing slavery. It is a type of letter issued or patent by the pope. The pope issued a papal bull granting Portugal and Spain full and free permission to invade, search out and capture unbelievers and enemies of Christ wherever they may be and reduce their persons into perpetual slavery,” he said a week after the regional reparations committee had met in Antigua to firm up preparations.

“So when we are asking for reparations, we can’t leave the church out. You can’t leave the pope out, nor can you leave European countries out,” said Farrakhan.

But even as he appeared to pledge support for the regional effort, he warned those in attendance to play an active role in the fight, contending that many of the senior people who traditionally represented the Caribbean on key issues were too easily silenced.

“Reparation is what we must seek, but it will not happen if we must go and beg England for it,” he said.

Caribbean governments meeting in Trinidad last year decided that the time had come to take on Britain, Portugal, Spain, France, the Netherlands and other countries that traded in slaves from West Africa. They hired the British law firm of Leigh Day to fight their case largely because it had won millions for Kenyan Mau Mau freedom fighters, who had experienced atrocities at the hands of British authorities. The firm has already said that it is convinced that the region has a good and strong case.

Farrakhan also urged Jamaica to become a republic and dump Queen Elizabeth as the island’s head of state, noting, “Jamaica must say goodbye to the queen. If a man don’t treat you right, then why will he teach you right?

“Break up the system of control. How can we function under the institution of the formal colonial master?”