The African Slave Trade

The African slave trade has been alive for centuries. While most of us associate slavery with 18th and 19th century America, the truth is that the African slave trade started long before America became involved. It is still alive today in certain parts of the African continent, but that doesnt change the fact that america was involved. The earliest records of the African slave trade in America date back to the beginning of the 17th century, when racial slavery was a punishment for servants who broke the law. In the 18th century, slaves were mostly used in the South to work in plantations and farms, especially by rich landowners who could afford the extra expense in order to maximize their profits. By the start of the Civil War in 1860, there were approximately four million slaves of African origin in the US.The Trans Atlantic slave trade was a “peculiar institution” in that it consciously targeted and separated the African slaves based on “race” and skin color, and then uniquely took the knowledge and memory of their history, language, culture and religion. The African slaves were invaded by Spain and the white Americans.

In Ghana and Nigeria in the 18th century, where the countries’ economies depended largely on the selling of hand labor, slavery inside Africa was often not for life. Slaves had the option of buying their liberty, and were normally paid enough that they could do it after a certain number of years. Blacks have never sold blacks for slavery. Most slaves were bought by Europeans from other African people. Often, rival tribes sold into slavery members of other tribes they captured during wars. Most of the slaves came from the West Africa and spoke many different languages. England was one of the latest countries to start slave trade. Soon England became on of the biggest slave trading nations. They began to bring slaves to the Caribbean. They formed the Royal African Company in 1672. This allowed English colonies in America to easily buy slaves from English traders. At the beginning only a few slaves came to English colonies. But when the big tobacco and rice plantations grew in the colonies in the south the slave trade increased. The trip was horrible. Many people died of diseases and were thrown overboard.

People were packed like animals and had to watch others die and suffer. They did not know where they were going and many decided to fight or even kill themselves. The ships carried much more people than they were made for. The slaves were given very little food during the trip. But, few days before they reached America, they were given extra food so they would look better and earn more money at the slave auction. I choose this topic because, slavery still exist in the world not only in america. they are like us, human being their is no difference between whites and blacks both of us created by God. what shame more is that they are illegal and do the house working cleaning or working in farms.if you look at american culture it is based on african american slaves. we should appreciate them and be a peacieable with them.hey blacks, if you are black doesn’t mean that you are slave. for me I like black people and i love them much because they have a white heart and like a gold this is from my experience I believe that Blacks face more bias in America than whites when it comes down to jobs, housing, education, the justice system, etc. Whites are more privileged in this country than blacks. People who don’t acknowledge this fact are ignorant, and in denial.

With that said, the racial divide between whites and blacks has been closing for many years because of the work of leaders and everyday people on both sides of the aisle. Blacks today have far more opportunity for advancement then their ancestors could ever dream of. With blacks involvment in government, corporate, and entertainment positions, the future is brighter than ever. People of all colors have always been capable of great good and great evil, beginning long before recorded history.some of the comments stated that black people should do this and that and said they could pick themselves up and and comparing them with the jews, who are white.we all know that this world treats whites like regular people. the blacks and if your skin just happen to be dark, you are not helped, you get no help. nobody is giving the black man or woman any help. the jews do better simply because they are white. so don’t compare the two. america treats anyone better than the blacks. even foreigners. the truth hurts. However, I do not believe that African Americans nor White Americans should ever forget what happened in the past. Understanding our past failings is the key to succeeding in our future.

Bibliography

Remembering Slavery: African Americans Talk About Their Personal Experiences of Slavery and Freedom, by Berlin Ira , New Press, The; Har/Cas edition (October 1, 1998), pages (12-36) Same Kind of Different As Me: by Ron Hall, Denver Moore and Lynn Vincent (Mar 11, 2008) (page 2-15)

Works Cited

http://library.thinkquest.org/03oct/00394/lifeslavelinks.htm http://savannahtah.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/HS-Slavery-in-Early-America-Instructional-Unit-.pdf www.slaveryinamerica.org/history/overview.htm