Slavery: Profound Impact on Global Relations

Slavery: The Practice that Changed the Future In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, slavery connected the world. Slaves were present on almost every continent and were traded frequently across the Atlantic Ocean. Various countries influenced their allies, persuading others to join the chaotic process of selling human lives. Slaves were taken from their native homeland in Africa, sold to plantation owners in the West Indies, and then shipped to their final destination: the United States of America. This was not just a bad habit or business tactic; slavery became a cruel lifestyle. Thousands of lives were altered, leaving a considerable impact on the physical, emotional, and social aspects of society. Many causes attributed to American

Contrary to popular belief, Americans weren’t the only perpetrators; “Europeans and slave traders also played a role in promoting internal conflict” (Nunn). Many African tribes would capture opposing tribes with the sole purpose of selling their prisoners as slaves. Tribes would send prisoners that they captured to America along the Middle Passage; in several instances wars would be started solely to obtain prisoners to sell into the slave trade (Angeles). If the financial situation in a family became desperate, some parents would go so far as to sell their child into the vicious slave

Some of the effects of slavery in America were positive, but almost all of slavery’s impact in Africa was harmful. One major change in the areas that slaves were exported from is shown in demographics. Thousands of males were taken from their families and communities, and the tribes were expected to survive without many of their local leaders or role models. Not only did local tribes in Africa have hardships, but the leadership in many of the countries’ governments weren’t stable. The cruel trade demonstrated “how the external demand for slaves caused political instability, weakened states, promoted political and social fragmentation, and resulted in a deterioration of domestic legal institutions” (Nunn) in Africa. In addition to the crumbling political aspects of the tribes, there were cultural and native conflicts. Many wars and disagreements occurred, and those conflicts significantly slowed down development and economic growth in African countries