Though Hidden from Society, Slavery Still Exists Today

2097 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The consequences of slavery in america

Introduction
This essay will attempt to describe the modalities and consequences of the abolition of the slave trade in early nineteenth century West Africa. We now live in a world where slavery is considered not to be morale since it was abolished however cases of slavery still exist today but are hidden from the public eye so well that no one even knows the exist. Forcing someone to perform various duties like cleaning without any form of payment against their will is considered to be a form of slavery and anyone found to be having slaves or holding anyone against their will these days is punished and possibly sentenced to jail for a very long period of time. We are in the 21st century and slavery is something that is not accepted by society.

Slave trade in West Africa
Majority of slave trade in West Africa was triggered by what is known as the transatlantic slave trade. A lot of books and article have been written and published regarding the transatlantic slave trade because it is one of the most defining moments in history and according to Behrendt and Rawley (2005) involved transporting of slaves across the Atlantic Ocean during the 16th all the way to the 19th century. The slaves were sold by West African to Europeans and American who would then transport them by ship to their lands to work in their farms, be servants, cut timber and build buildings. The transatlantic slave trade enabled the Africans to sell items to the Europeans and the American such as clothes and goods however trading people just happen to be in the equation as most of the village chiefs at the time wanted to sell humans in exchange for guns. Most of the people who were sold to the western world were people who were regarded as having a disruptive influ...

... middle of paper ...

...s considered to be bad by many missionaries who continued to voice their opinion about how wrong they thought human trafficking was. Despite the presence of the missionaries and treaties being signed, many in European and African felt that slavery was a profitable business and continue to trade illegally. It is thanks to the British who worked very hard to stop slave trading by passing tougher punishments to their European counter who participated in illegal trading as explained in the second part of this essay. When slavery was stopped completely, it made the world a much better place with many ship owners refusing to carry slave and preferred to carry raw materials instead. The abolishing of slave trade also meant Africa could stand on its own and therefore produce their own material and trade with the Europeans and other countries to the east of the continent.

Show More
Related

  • Slavery John Barabot Summary

    1272 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the major questions asked about the slave trade is ‘how could so Europeans enslave so many millions of Africans?” Many documents exist and show historians what the slave trade was like. We use these stories to piece together what it must have been to be a slave or a slaver. John Barbot told the story of the slave trade from the perspective of a slaver in his “A Description of the Coasts of North and South Guinea.” Barbot describes the life of African slaves before they entered the slave trade.

    Read More

  • Slaves And Summary: The Transatlantic Slavery By William Snelgrave

    1572 Words  | 4 Pages

    The first aspects we can analyze is the level of difference between the slavery of Africa compared to the European form of slavery. As these sources illustrate traditional African slavery was quite different on several levels compared to the European form of slavery many are familiar with. Slavery in Africa as stated before can be more closely associated with indentured servitude where the slaves were often treated as a member of the family rather than treated with brutality. According to the multiple sources discussed earlier, a prominent aspect of European slavery in Africa was to the harsh treatment and dehumanizing of its slave it order to keep them subordinate to their European captures. Historians might beg the question why was European slavery different than traditional African

    Read More

  • Essay On Trans-Atlantic Interactions

    526 Words  | 2 Pages

    The trans-Atlantic trade of African slaves contributed to maintaining progression of labor systems as well as promoting change in the British North American colonies. The slaves provided labor and helped produce the cash crops that were then exported to Europe where they traded the goods to trade with Africans for more slaves. The Africans enslaved each other and sold more slaves to be sent to the colonies in

    Read More

  • The Slave Trade: The Two Princes Of Calabar

    567 Words  | 2 Pages

    The transatlantic slave trade was one of the most important factors in how the world came to be the way it is today. This trade led to the economic prosperity and political development in European countries and the population decline on the African continent. It was the catalyst for the development of both rich and poor societies today. The Two Princes of Calabar is a prime example of how this trade affected the economic growth of the countries and civilizations involved.

    Read More

  • Olaudah Equiano

    1200 Words  | 3 Pages

    The concept of slavery was accepted as a part of the culture and even in the fields of Isseke, Africa slaves were put to work. “Sometimes indeed, we sold slaves to them, but they were only prisoners of war, or such among us as had been convicted of kidnapping or adultery, and some other crimes, which we esteemed heinous.” (38)

    Read More

  • Abolish The Transatlantic Slave Trade

    1642 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Transatlantic Slave Trade started out as merchant trading of different materials for slaves. With obtaining a controllable form of labor being their main focus, the Europeans began to move to Africa and take over their land. The natives had to work on the newly stolen land to have a source of income to provide for their families.Soon others Europeans began to look for free labor by scouring the continent of Africa. Because Europeans were not familiar with the environment, Africans were employed to kidnap other Africans for the Transatlantic Slave Trade. After trade routes were established, different economies began to link together, and various items were exchanged across the world. As the Atlantic Slave Trade grew larger, problems began

    Read More

  • Abina Mansha, A Slave

    885 Words  | 2 Pages

    Though the Atlantic Slave Trade began in 1441, it wasn’t until nearly a century later that Europeans actually became interested in slave trading on the West African coast. “With no interest in conquering the interior, they concentrated their efforts to obtain human cargo along the West African coast. During the 1590s, the Dutch challenged the Portuguese monopoly to become the main slave trading nation (“Africa and the Atlantic Slave Trade”, NA). Besides the trading of slaves, it was also during this time that political changes were being made. The Europe...

    Read More

  • Triangular trade

    346 Words  | 1 Pages

    Slaves and slave trade has been an important part of history for a very long time. In the years of the British thirteen colonies in North America, slaves and slave trade was a very important part of its development. It even carried on to almost 200 years of the United States history. The slave trade of the thirteen colonies was an important part of the colonies as well as Europe and Africa. In order to supply the thirteen colonies efficiently through trade, Europe developed the method of triangular trade. It is referred to as triangular trade because it consists of trade with Africa, the thirteen colonies, and England. These three areas are commonly called the trades “three legs.”

    Read More

  • Slavery in American Society: Impact and Evolution

    1631 Words  | 4 Pages

    The controversies surrounding slavery have been established in many societies worldwide for centuries. In past generations, although slavery did exists and was tolerated, it was certainly very questionable,” ethically“. Today, the morality of such an act would not only be unimaginable, but would also be morally wrong. As things change over the course of history we seek to not only explain why things happen, but as well to understand why they do. For this reason, we will look further into how slavery has evolved throughout History in American society, as well as the impacts that it has had.

    Read More

  • DBQ ESSAY

    920 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1732, John Barbot wrote in his writing (Collection of Voyages) that “African canoes carrying slaves on board of ships at Manfroe. Also shows European trading vessels and slave ships in the background and various forts.”(Source 1) This stated that Africans were the ones who started the whole thing and the Europeans didn’t really get into the idea since they were mainly there for gold and silvers. Thus, Africans were the ones who regulated this slave trade during this period. In 1786-1787, Europeans began the “Capture and Coffle of Enslaved Africans, Angola, 1786-87” (Source 10) Europeans began to enslaved Africans to work on the plantations and Africa’s superiority began to decrease. Also, Curtin Phillip D. in The Atlantic Slave Trade; a Census. London: University of Wisconsin Press,1969, “… the transformation of...

    Read More

  • The Characteristics Of Human Slavery In 1450-1750 CE

    1237 Words  | 3 Pages

    Also, following the Age of Exploration, West Africa became the main source for slaves specifically the formally known nation of Kongo-Angola. The main reason for Africa being the largest source of slaves was because, unlike the surrounding nations which were powerful, rich empires, Africa consisted of small tribes and kingdoms. These kingdoms’ greatest exports would consist of gold, salt, and slaves, in exchange for the goods imported from the surrounding

    Read More

  • Slavery In America

    1493 Words  | 3 Pages

    There has been much debate on the topic of slavery in the early times, although most of the countries considered slavery as a criminal activity. Some countries such as Myanmar and Sudan do not abolish it. They even expedite the slavery system. It is no doubt that slavery violent the human rights. However, it was commonly spread in the early times from 17th to 19th century. In this research, I will talk about the origin of the slavery, the reasons for people to becoming slave and the life of the slave.

    Read More

  • Slavery and the Anti-slavery Movement

    1030 Words  | 3 Pages

    Anytime we hear the word “slavery”, we tend to think of the Southern United States during the Pre-Civil War era. What many people don’t know, is that this horrible act has occurred worldwide! The term “slavery” has many different definitions, and has occurred all throughout our world history. It wasn’t until the early 18th century that the thought of anti-slavery came about. Many economic, social, and technological forces have played a part in the decline of slavery around the globe.

    Read More

  • The Middle Passage

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    The concept of the slave trade came about in the 1430’s, when the Portuguese came to Africa in search of gold (not slaves). They traded copper ware, cloth, tools, wine, horses and later, guns and ammunition with African kingdoms in exchange for ivory, pepper, and gold (which were prized in Europe). There was not a very large demand for slaves in Europe, but the Portuguese realized that they could get a good profit from transporting slaves along the African coast from trading post to trading post. The slaves were bought greedily by Muslim merchants, who used them on the trans-Sahara trade routes and sold them in the Islamic Empire. The Portuguese continued to collect slaves from the whole west side of Africa, all the way down to the Cape of Good Hope (South Africa), and up the east side, traveling as far as Somalia. Along the way, Portugal established trade relations with many African kingdoms, which later helped begin the Atlantic Slave Trade. Because of Portugal’s good for...

    Read More

  • The Impact of the Transatlantic Slave Trade on Ghana: A Violent Legacy

    2407 Words  | 5 Pages

    This class was filled with riveting topics that all had positive and negative impacts on Africa. As in most of the world, slavery, or involuntary human servitude, was practiced across Africa from prehistoric times to the modern era (Wright, 2000). The transatlantic slave trade was beneficial for the Elite Africans that sold the slaves to the Western Europeans because their economy predominantly depended on it. However, this trade left a mark on Africans that no one will ever be able to erase. For many Africans, just remembering that their ancestors were once slaves to another human, is something humiliating and shameful.

    Read More

More about Though Hidden from Society, Slavery Still Exists Today

Open Document