In 1998 when I was planning my pilgrimage to West Africa, I was warned against visiting Mauritania. It was explained to me that slavery against the “Black” African population was still practised there by the “White” Arabs and I could therefore put my self at risk. The fear was not so much my abduction and enslavement, but certainly blatant discrimination in a hostile environment where I would have no protection by (or from) the law. Needless to say, I avoided Mauritania.
I subsequently read a book by Samuel Cotton entitled: “Silent Terror: A Journey into Contemporary African Slavery”. Published in 1999, it highlighted his research into the dynamics of modern day slavery in Mauritania and Sudan. I recently read “Slave: My True Story” by Mende Nazer, a horrifying autobiography of her 1993 abduction and enslavement in Sudan at age 12, and her flight to freedom 7 years later while working for a Sudanese diplomat in London England.
I have also read a number of articles on the issue of child slavery in West Africa today. While the system of slavery in Mauritania and Sudan is based primarily on historical and traditional social systems, the phenomenon of child slavery in West African countries is based on poverty. Parents sell their children into slavery for a few dollars and false promises that they will only be working part-time, taken care of and sent to school. It’s ironic that I had visited Ghana during my pilgrimage and toured a number of the slave castles along the coast. I even visited the slave castle in the Kormance Region, where it is very likely that my ancestor(s) were housed before being shipped off to Jamaica as slaves. Today, Ghana is one of the West African countries that has a serious problem with child slavery.
I would like to share an indepth report from last month on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation website (CBC.ca), concerning this issues of modern day slavery and child trafficking in West Africa. The link is here. There are links to the 3 articles penned by David Gutnick which discusses these topics in detail. You will also find links to previous CBC articles and other resource materials about modern day slavery.
Here is a another link to a case study and other articles by the BBC World Service pertaining to Article 4 of the U.N.’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Freedom From Slavery”.
The challenge now becomes: “now that we know, what are we going to do or can do about it?” Suggestions are welcomed.
How strange!
I woke up this morning with a thought of Arabs and the significant part they played in the whole exploitation of Africans in the slave trade.
But put it away, as I would have to do a lot of research and would probably offend a whole lot of people.
Thank you for this article. You have put in the hard work to bring to us one aspect of this abominable trade in human beings.
Winslie,
Read “The Destruction of Black Civilization” by our notable Black historian Dr. Chancellor Williams. He discusses not only European and Christian incursions and barbarity into the African continent, but also the foreign Arab and Muslim actions which also lead to the destruction of African culture and civilizations.
I should have also mentioned that when I visited Ghana in 1998, I went to the northern region of that country. Interestingly, you could see that northern Ghana had a more Islamic influence in dress and architecture than the coast, that had a more European flavour. It was explained to me that Arab invaders had secured slaves from northern Ghana and therefore had set up bases there. While I visited European built slave castles along the coast of Ghana, in northern Ghana I visited fields where slaves were collected and held by Arab traders. There were still shackles in the ground where the slaves were chained.
This matter of slavery is not just an Africa phenomenon any more. It is a Russian problem, an Asian problem as well. I think the law is just too lenient with people who violate the human rights of another. Nor do I think any of this will change until we start summarily executing the perpetrators. This disgusting element will always do what it can get away with. If the enslavement cannot be accomplished by direct means then it is accomplished with sophisticated criminality that creates economic enslavement. Believe it or not, it doesn’t take much to feel enslaved when you have enormous debt parading around as home “ownership”, a car note, insurance payment on the car, and a host of other obligations we take on to seem successful. Freedom is a wonderful thing. But freedom begins in the mind. Plant that seed and it will grow or you will die trying. Either way you are free.
We could lean on our representatives to make slavery and issue in the US. America does have persuasive power. It could have more that small lip service in our diplomacy. No one in the US really wants to make it an issue, because it has not been dealt with here. It might stir up the question of reparations and for the folks on the right, they would have to stop blaming the black Africans for their own demise.
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Damn, I visited Ghana, traveled to the slave castles and did not know about modern day slavery in Ghana. This is truly disturbing when in the US it’s believed slavery no longer exists.
I dont believe this! Yet its in fine print infront of my face! How can people be so cruel!?!? I cant believe people could be so cruel!!
OH and just when I was taking a shower this morning I was thinking how lucky i was to not have anymore slavery in the world! BUT! There it was more slavery starting! Why do people do this to people because of there different color , shape, size, or caracter!?!?!
What the !%@$# is going on in this world?!?!??!! I dont know but it just $@#!@% mean!!!
Asabagna,
THANK YOU for this post!! I too, have just returned from Ghana and have a difficult time putting into words what I was witness to on so many levels… let alone considering what our ancestors had to actually endure as part of their everyday reality.
I’d love to talk more with you on this and other related topics, my email is: jody.benninger@gmail.com if you have time.
Take care and keep posting articles of substance as a means to educate,
Jody/Adjoa
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Slavery and Genocide are the worst problems facing African/Black peoples of the planet. Thankyou Afrosphere for contiuing to keep this fact in front of our faces. I wish more folks in the news media would focus on the worst oppressions of people in the world so then these problems can be reduced. I believe that they can be greatly diminished with efforts of blogs like yours motivating and waking up the common folks. Your writing is not a wasted effort please contiue waking us up.