Triangular Slave Trade Impact On African Americans

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Recommended: Economic effects of the trans-atlantic slave trade

The transatlantic slave trade had an immense impact on the lives of millions enslaved Africans. The consequences of importing slaves across the middle passage included the loss of connections to their family and culture, as well as their freedom. These changes had a devastating impact on their emotional wellbeing. Not only did the treatment affect their mental state, their physical health also severally declined due to poor conditions and horrendous punishment. The triangular slave trade significantly impacted the lives of all enslaved Africans. The movement from Africa to the Americas, transported millions of Africans across the Atlantic Ocean on crowded, unsanitary and inhumane ships. Over 12,500,000 African slaves were traded for goods …show more content…

Most of the Africans who were enslaved were captured and taken away from their families and tribes, in battles or were kidnapped, though some were sold into slavery for debt or as punishment. This would have impacted dramatically on the slaves’ family as many were separated from one another and children would perish without the protection of their parents. Upon these ships the African slaves were treated inhumanly and conditions on board, during the Middle Passage were appalling. These captives were often lacking in health from the physical and mental abuse they suffered aboard the slave ships as they were packed closely together below deck, sometimes stacked on top of each other or shackled together like livestock. In addition, hygiene during the journey across the middle passage was dreadful. It was likely, the captains of the ships provided very little sanitation, such as small buckets for the millions of slave’s excrement, or maybe none at all. Due to the horrendous condition on the ships many slaves turned to suicide to end their suffering. Source …show more content…

Many of the Africans that made it across the Atlantic Ocean suffered cruel punishments at the farms they worked. The mistreatment of slaves frequently included rape and the sexual abuse of women. Punishment was normally inflicted due to disobedience, however occasionally abused slaves to assert dominance. Source 2 by James Ramsey, a doctor working on sugar plantations, displayed the punishment the slaves had to endured for instance, absence from work, eating the sugar cane, theft, would likely lead to “whipping, beating with a stick, sometimes to the breaking of bones, the chain, an iron crook about the neck... a ring about the ankle, and confinement in the dungeon”. Teaching slaves to read was discouraged or prohibited so as to hinder aspirations for escape or rebellion. Source 3, the Alabama Slave code (1833) showed the law passed to stop the education of African slaves. “Any person who shall attempt to teach aa person of colour, or slave to read write…” would be convicted and fined. Olaudah Equiano autobiography bring to light issues effecting slaves in Africa and the conditions on board the slave ships. His autobiography is a evidence of the impact reading and writing had on the African slaves, as without it they could not rebel against their situation. The treatment of slaves was cruel and vicious. It would seem that many African slaves sent to plantations during the slave trade

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