From: Rosemary D'Angelo
Date: 2/9/00
Time: 9:27:31 PM
Remote Name: 63.209.188.210
Rosemary D’Angelo History 67
In African culture slavery was a common practice. They had practiced slavery since ancient times. In some cases the black Africans would trade their war captives to European slave traders for rum, clothes, etc., especially guns. The Africans used these guns in the wars with neighboring tribes. A European slave ship would land on the coast of Africa. The European slave traders would then travel up to 200 miles inland to go to fairs where they could buy the slaves from black traders. The European purchaser would have an opportunity to examine these slaves at these fairs. They would look at the age and health conditions of each slave. They would chose the slave with the least amount of defects, and most capable of performing much work. After being examined, the slaves were then taken aboard the ship. They were handcuffed and chained together. They were packed so tightly together in such small apartments that the slaves had to lay on their sides in order to fit. The most important fact about the slave trade was the kind of treatment the slaves received. It is unimaginable how cruel one human being could treat another. In Olaudah Equiano’s account of his experience, he recalls an event which shows a white man being punished by being thrown overboard by his own people for “flogging so unmerciful”. This particular event, along with many others, shows how evil and brutal people were.