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Step Forward,
Look Back
Commemorating the 200th Anniversary of the
Abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Trade in Enslaved Africans
NIlINe I I sMAMJ ANI
I H I II :I N,, ql I I N M VUl l A M .V A 11
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Step Forward,
Look Back
The construcalon of sisrorlcal records Is an Imrlcaie exercise, since history is
almost always a combination of fact and the impressions, values and emotions of
the 3coplc who wri:c it. Sometimes it is not easy to look back on history, as
some periods of the past are difficult for people living in Ehe present to digest.
Same things therefore remain unsaid or unexplored. But in order to rrove on and
develop one's self in positive ways one must look back at the gamut of on:'s
hIstoryto celebrate The upliftnci nimes, and to understand tihe unpleasant ones.
The philosophy of stepping forward into the future while looking back to the past
is embodied in the Akan symrrbol Sankofa a stylized bI'd iOat flies forward but
looks back. Sometimes the bird is depicted with an egg, which snmbo izes the
future. For the Akan peoples of presc-t day Ghana, SankoFa literall means "i:
is not prohibice cot go bac< and reclaim our past so that we can move forward
anrd understand why and how we came to be who we are.'
The symbol was chosen as the Icon of hils exhibition since, as we look cursorily
at the Trans-Atlartic Trade in Enslaved Afr cans and the abolition of tie Brit sh
trade in thosc persons (as opposed to the abolition of slavery, which happtred in
h!ls regqoi rmanyyears later, from 1834 to 1838), we may not find pleasart
answers, regardless of wiat ra:e we are (or think we are), but we may find
answers tOat rn ght hel us as Caribbean people to better understand who vwe are,
and whom we should strIve to be In the future.
Thesymol as hoen s [e Ion f~Isehblnsieaweokcuory
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A It is also rue that lang before the TTEA, the
African continent, li
at that time, had a tradition Df ens having people
for their personal use, ani trading them -o-
commercial gain.
Some oft the main reasons for pre-TTEA slavery
in Africa w re'
L) inter-tilbal warfare the prisoners of
war would become en slat'ed by the victors
of tie war.
2) Debt payment if someone was unable
tc. ray a debt, he or she offered themselves
Snr nprmhers of rwpir fam illies to pay the
debt in :he form of a period of servitude.
when the Jebr was deemed to be paid off,
the person was likely free to go.
3 +" 3) Punishment for criminals Sometimes,
ens avemnent was te punishment for those
who committed crimes against their own
tribe or other tribes.
S1) Prestige Some members ot African royalty
rridy hdye kept erlld'ded perbore ab Sign
J ot power and wealth
S) Economic activity Thepr is pvidenrce of
an extensive trans-Saharar trade in
ens aved people long before the TTEA, as
well as a trade between Eastern Africa
and Asia.
It can be argued that systems of intra-At-ican
slavePry wprp equally LrnjJtj and wnuld have
facilitated the TTEA. However, the effect of the
TTEA has been denrlfled by many analysis as hie
first move towards modern econDnic
globalization and hegernony via subjugation and
commvdification of fdellw humans.
This detail of a twentieth century beir of cowrie shells is rerminisrent of the era when they
were the preferred currency in si53nifi:cat areas of the African continent. Enslaved persons.
along with other "merchandise". were exchanged for cowries. na nly within the African
corti ent. An enslaved person r ilht have fetched 25.000 of these. Today. Ihey are
malnly decorative eleemenis In contermorary accessories. particulady amonr people of the
African diaspora.
The West Coast of Africa in he time of Ihe TTrA. had different areas known primarily for the
trade of various merchandisJ, including enslaved persons. There was the Grain Coast, the Gold
Coast and the Slave Coast, Of course, no coast was exclusive; gold could be purchased on the
Grain Coast. grain on the Slave Coast, etc. Source: Sins of the Faihers. Pope-Ienressy, 1967,
I he beginning of the I lEA is generally
identified as 1441 when Portuguese
merchants, sal I ng along the West African
oast, came into possession &o
approximately ten Africans and took them
hark tn Rnrng;Il fnt rhp PnrltgkjuL
royalty, probably mare as an exotic
noveliy than anything else. Gradually,
over decades, and then centuries, the
Europeans, whose Internal stability,
maritime strength and hegenmonic
ambitions had increased, began the
yqtmatrifc purchavr, nnd salp of aplpurrpd
people, chl.ifly to supply labour For the
cultivation of sugar and other products
grown in tleir colonies for which there
was widespread demand in Europe.
IJI
Phiotogvph of the Cape Coast Castle, c5. lale 20thi Cenlury-
Source. The SIkzv Shipo Fredensbcirg': Leif Sv~a eseri. 2000.
Photo~graph ciflihe
courtyard ih the Castle of
SOUOE: Simn cf the fati'irs:
Pope-Hnffr~ess, 196L7.
I he African slavery system was nothing for any individual wi:h any hurranity to be proud
oF, &ut many feel that :he TTEA took enslavement to a new level of human degradation:
Africans began to syvtemratically entrap and kidnap other Africans so that they could sel
itheiim to Euruipetris.
Many argue that the impowarishment of many parts af rnntempna ry Africa, as well as
the foundation of -noderr-day racisrr. were built from this rise of European demand fbr
forced African labour that lasted for over four hundred years. THese scholars conEend
that racism did not cause trais-Atlantic slavery; trans-Atlantic slavery caused racism.
The slave forts we-e w-ere the kidrapped and purcFased Africans would be kept until
they began their trip to the so-called "New World", ironically, they were cal ed castles
The first of its kind was ihe FPoruguase CastIe of Flmina, initially kn Nra as (rt San da
IVina de Curo and estabi shed in 1182 as a trading post for gold, which still stands
today. The Cape Coast Cas5le, the main ritilsri fort, established by the Swedish In 1653,
then captured by the Dutch and subsequenIly by the British, has also survive the test of
time. These and cther physical vestiges of the TT-A, such as the trading posts or Corie
Islaic off the coast of present-day Sinigal, are accessible tc tourists, scholars and
other invest-gators of history.
Why, migHt yoj ask, wvou d the Af-icars agree to sell their own people especially ir such
great numbers to people who did not belong to the cortlnrent? The answe- Ile_ In a
combination of fact's, some of which& may be that
(I) The African e-nntinent already h;rt a "rant-Sah ara trarie and Fa t Afrira-Alia trade,
and therefore trading in humans was not a novelty;
(liP The Europeans courted rh. Africans and brought :hemn gifts and consumable Items
which only increased the Afiican desire for them. It is highly likely that Europeans
convinced them that the acquisition of foreign, technolicially advarced ard/o'
exotic merchaiwdise was so desirable that the AfricanIs were prepared to trade their
own people fhr this mercPand se. Perhaps this was one of the first larce-scale
multi-prnditrt marketing rampagns that thi wnrld had PvPr sf. Srim, ana yts
contnrnd that Africans devalued their own economy, not to mention their fellow
Africars, by accepting far less valuable fare per ens aved person. So if an African
readerr vou d originally accept several thousand cowrie shells for one person, he
night low accept a mere mirror or a couple of guns;
(liil n scme instances the Europeans convinced the Africans thar they were takhig
:roublesonme members of society (such as criminals,, off their hands. I here was alsc
an extensive history cf Europe shipp ng off what they considered to be the misfits of
.heir own society as bonded servants to their various colonies beforee the TTEA;
(Iv) Of course, ore must not forget that ihe slave-trading Europeans also had supeilar
weaponry In the form of guns. As the TTEA progressed, guns became one of the
major tools of subjugation; the slave tracers could easily kill or malm African; who
resistedd enslavement, which woulc Intimidate the witnesses of the act, and they
could put cuns into the hands of Africans who agreed to help them, :hereby winning
allies in Aftican ranks. They could have also 'orcibl' retained these mercenaries
with the threat of "capture or be captured"; "'kill or be killed",
Thi IS I an engraving ot a slave otthe a prc~ession ot people wAalking as a group in yokes
and chi~ans. This was a r-mrmon methaid ot tramsportlrnq caplured people ocn the Atflean
contimem, lhe African caprors Aould 9,:) into the linerlor ant$ deliver Qe captives taM
coastal slave ifoils. 5Durce:. 0 he Sfave -Ntlip rIeSWg Leiif Syallesein 2UQV.
The Europeans, starting witn Portugal, continuing with Spain, FranceT Brandenburg,
Blitain, Holland, Sweden and Denmark, justified the trade with various arguments:
1 Initially, they may hve r itionalized that these enslaved Africans were Africans
whom the Africans themselves did not want ir their society,
2 As subscribers to a mercartilist philosophy, they felt tha: the means justified
the ends. At the Height of the TTEA, the governments, monarchies and bus ness
communities of the leading slaving countries had heavily invested in lhe trade
and made handsome profits.
3 The major churches of the day, in general, walking in step with the economic
aspirations of the monarchy, merchants anri governments, con'/inced Itemselv'es
that the Afr cans were heathens, in need of J-hristianizing, ardl therefore to take
them away frcm a savagee' way cf life wojId be an act of saving their sou s. In fact,
the fi',r pnslavpd AfI ranr hbriJght rn the "Atw W\frld rwp ar icajlly hrijghr f-nrn
Spain, not the African continent; they wer cons dered more desirable since they
had been Christianized.
4 Suie iJ dei-iJdd, probably fur thie dke r tlei own saolity, that the people tlhai 1ihey
enslaved were not really human and therefore coulId be created as sub-human.
So tie slavers shipped them off, otten completely naked and with little hope of being
reunited with their families, to tlis "New World". For centuries. th s circuit tl-at traced il
humans across the A:lantic was one nf the shipping circuits referred to as -h@ Triangular
Trade. The Triangle would originate In Europe and then follow one of these routes:
1. Africa to the Caribbean and back to Europe;
2. AfliLd Lu Nurth ArnmeriLdand badk to Eurupe;
3. Africa to South America and back to Europe.
ROUTE
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A map from the United NaJtions Ediicatia nal, Scientific and Cultu ral Organization [1U NES(O]
Slavre Rom~e Projec id irdcaLing the v~arious slave routes of the colonial era.
Sopurce: http / 1portaI..j ne so rgIru I ture.
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The Midcle Passage, the second leg of this Triangular Trade. was the most notorioLs
since this was the leg of the journey that carried the enslaved persons from Africa to
the Caribbean and North and South America, with most men allocated the square
footage equivalent to a coffin. Women and children may have had more room on the
upper deck. 4gonizirg deaths by torture, disease, mutiny, malnutrition and suicide
wiprp rimrr nn.ri Sntm hktmr raI Ppnrtr dAprrihp tth.vrkI fnlnwing thipt ;inrp ths
stench of blood and other body -luids signalled a ready meal especially since the slave
ships sufrieLirnie Lthew 'whdt LIthy tiriidernd to exL e x .aryu _Tu uver drt;, indudirny
people Additionally, alcohclismn anc disease were common among the ships' crews.
ii--- A cldararn of tre
slave ship
Fredensborg (the
wreckage of which
was founwc off the
Coast of Norway)
enslaved people
---__________wee arrived. Most
.... ... surviving diagrams
S of slave ships have
Shown similar
Spacing" rhe
enslaed people.
lSource;: e Sth e
5hOp Frde47sbvrg;
A minilti- nrury il ohato Pnriipd ahmt whether a 4hip Ohnlkl rmck rhp rargn 'Inn1 (i.u.
with fewer slavez but morm ventilation and room to mor, and thirfore Icp cargo los)
or "tight" (with roure. ldves but greater risk ur dibedpt amid IoSs urdid ~targu). Oile o[
Ihe most infamous cases illustrating t&Ie results of tight paci
ship Zong. In 1781. the captain, Luke Collingwood had over-packed ihe ship with
enslaved Africans and the rate o- death by die ase was high; he had lost sx crewmen
and sixty slave5 and nrany others were ailing. In harder to cL.t his losses, he decided to
throw 132 sick ens lived people D overboard. confident that he could clai them as
business losses uncer British insurance laws, which dd indeed cater for compensation
for the loss of enslaved people in transit, once they did not die a natural death on
board th~ ship. He submitted his claim to the insurer, arguing that there wa5
insufficient water for :he crew and derefore he had to gei rid of some of the weaker,
ess mportart carqo that ou d have consumed the scarce water. The insurer reFused
to pay and in 17813 rhP Zng owners wpnt in rnurt, demand ng 30s) per human. They
lost the case, but only because evidence was given that there was aenougo water on
Chief Jusice _ord Iansfield who presided over the case commiserated with the Zong
owners, stating that he jiderstood that throwing away the slaves wa"s the samrne as f
horses had beei thrown overboard, but based on the insurance investigation results,
he could not rule in favour Cf con11pensation. Neither the ega nor insurance systems
appeared to qive consideration to the fact that mass murcer had occurred. The case
caused outrage ir many B-it sh quarters, and was a catalyst for the growing agitation in
Brita n for the abolition of the slave tradc and cf slavery.
I
Y0
* Ccrtr:4 Ai~xna a-td M~L-e 0. 3%
N*MEco 2. 131
rerrit.;ry of -hE United State-, 4,6%
E E f-r rrj~jj 0.2%4
N Errl' -ji~irin lisan. 0-,'
I iklc m~r%- ile -
ThricIrlad and o-aoxiz- 93%
U S Virgi Ilslrs 0,1%
Gra-ada -H%
3i 'vi iw 1, 5- .1-i ii. Dvijru ii~t 0.8%
* Leew~rd IsIluxt 17%
J Martirquc -3.3W
0 biar-.dos -4LU16
13Cub~a 7'
I k iiidi LA4 -7.
.Haui 9
*ICh'ie 01%
* Fre1lTh Gjria- C.6%
NEPrj 1.
E11r11crqarina, UrL.;u.., Paimg~n any~d BoIi~i 2
0'/e~rei!aeli 1IA
0 Cr bi&'a~mii-m,:. an-7Y
* Slit i I~I diolda-r Gutd 5. %6
N B~razil 39-23
Distri butioin of Enslavied Africans. 14 90- IR 7 (SourC*: Sc hom burg Centre for
Ra-inrch in Rla&k Cuftcure utisig stati!Ltkic ficin Philip Curtin)-
vyw I r rwokiana ra.a eq I ml g ira~kions I topkei edm~n I graticm1 1Uta p c "kab 1M-g
I he estimates of the people who were enslaved or wiho perished by !the 1 I LAvary
viicelv- there is no svste~natiicvy~ accurately accounting for those lost to enlraiornnt
Ini Afti~c or to the Middle Pass~ e &iince the slave Shlp;' cargo w'ass ~o often urnderstattd
and Afrilcan5 who died in raids OF slaye coffles nin Africa would hardly have been
accounted for. T~he number is certainly in the mril iori5, anJ A Is Felt in mlany quarters
that thnr, Africain,. wlhnruxi.vivd thi% Mleldlp Pamg win ncnt niirrlpr lp;R rhah 10
million. -h s mnj~t also 3e remembered in the contex- of the decimation of the
incl-ganous peoples of the Carlbbean and North and 5outh Americz (su~h as the Incas,
the Mayas1, :he Caribs. the Talnos and the Arawaks. whose e imnination fifougah
ienisavement, and diseas-t brought from EuropQ was ailso in the~ mi Ilior&.
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An enslaved wolnan beinq branded.
Branding was one mar.ifes:ation of chattel
slavery. This form of slavery gives full
rights of ownership to the purchaser of the
human. Throj.h brarding. the purchaser
of the enslaved person is at iberty tc
id rnt fy hi,'her "rmirnl.hdir ibe"
Any children this 'merctand se" would
produce would also belong to himIher.
Enslaved people were usually branded twicee once bv the slave -raders before they
left Afice, andi, onc. when they arrived in the New World and were sold. In the firs:
I istaice, the slaving enterprise wanted to keep track Df its cargo, and in the second,
the purchaser of the Individual wanted to be able to identify h s property once the
sale had been completed.
Sometimes there would be a "slave scramble", where all tle erslaved people who
had recently arrived ir tie "New World- would be offe-ed in the marketplace for the
same price. At an appointed time, the area where they were being held would be
thrown open and pLrchasers cOaLId rush in and grat as many people rtat they could
get their hands on. Ropes were sometimes used to lasso a group of enslaved
people In order to maximize the number of possible purchases.
TOBEIOTAD& LET
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Left; A. 207 pictr of a te-C. 11 n what is now c I.ed Old Market in Sc.arbcro.uh,.ob..g. Sen or
citizen % wh@sc': furcbcars; wvere born soon after the abolition of slavery havc indiccatrd tlhat
lhey wero inforrred that this is where slaves and other rnerchandism were said.
Right A poster advertising items, including l'unrn&a for sale, 11529. It is not certain whether It is
a poster from robago; the reference 10 "Under the rees" may or may not pertin to the Old
Trfde: rAe -tr, of Tra arnwrft 3 avery: Oliver an sford, 197,1 ari the Tobago Museunm.
The history of Trinidac and Tobagn as it pertains to the TTEA is not as well-docurnenied
as thI.t of say. Barb adc 5.amaica or Cuba one reason bcing pcrlhaps that wid:5orcad
seclernenc of Europeans came much later for what was to becorr the twin-Island staie
that many people now call horre. Tobaqc's history is nore complex than Trinidad, in
terms of the number of European countries which sought to OCCLpy i: and the numlIer of
times that each of them did. Some ana yts conteic that the island was too strategic in
the age ol sailing sh ps to :e developec tor sugar as sOcn as the olher Caribtean
territories and therefore was kept more as an outpost. 1: changed hands ofren, starirg
with the Spanish, then back -nd forth between the Dutch, French and British and even
the DJchy or Cojrland (a province ofmDdern-day Latvla), before finally resting In BritIsl
hands in '803.
The firs: shipment of sugar i saiJ to have IflI the island in 1770, ind the heigH ofits
sugar production was actually in the ea-ly nineteenth century much later than mary
other territories in the region at thzt time Tobago was placed under the administrative
Control f Triridad in 8M~.
Trinidad also hal -elativel little European settlement for nearly two centuries a-ter the
arijal rf Colurilm-i It was rinly in 17,R., wun Spain grantp-.1 a oCedila nf Prpiuatinn in
F-anc_ to develop Trinidad thil a.ttlcmrFcts bregn in carncsi. The Frcrch came from
Other Caribbean territories with enslaved persons, and the first sjgar estate and factory
was established by M. Pico: de Lapeyrouse (af-er whom a Part of Spain ce-netery is now
named) in 1787. The British took cover :he island to scme extent in 1797, and it was
LdJrL Ito Llntin by lie Sp nniiiii in 1802.
Trinidad and Tobago became a sovereign state upon independence from Britain in 1962.
The nat on became a republic in 1976.
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Arnos Vale, Tobago is home to one of tie few almost intact sugar prccssing systems of
tie colonial era rhat remain in :he country today. The plantarion changed hands several
t mres over the colonial era, and is still privately owned. The two hundred and thirty-nine-
year-old structure currently functions as the backdrop to an open-air rastauranl.
lb? Fwares~ing atiugar required uiwrgy. which~ wari provided hya Natmr pciwerud wihal i1hat
drove the rollers that cru shad thei cane (wheel top left rollers above left) The sucau cane
Juice would ]hen be sent to the boilino room where it would be separate at hiqh temnperalures
Into raw sciamr and molasses. The chimney.g above ilaht. l*Ip to disperse somei of ihe hea
of the boiling room, The raw suIga r waSs efli to Eniplarid to be refined: the molasses %~as made
into runi.
Ihe image below is a boiling room as it may have looked in the colonial era.
i
One Ilundred and eighty-el hi years after
the date on the register of enslaved persons
for the Camden Estate, this 2007
phatograpli show the original Camden
Koad in Couva, I rnidad. According to
residents of the area. it was probably a
sral er estate and was likely acquired *y
tiL Br ilibh ugydr producer Ta~e and Lyle
and then annexed to Ihe Caroni sugar
processing system- This area was alko once
a back-up land ng strip for Waller Field and
Carlsen he d during Woric War I. 1 he road
currenllv leads to the site of a heliport,
Note that the road is still flanked by sugar
tane, DiilylI'f ucphi.e Lihe rudd db lle
cemetery where enslaved people ot the
estate were hurid.
I
tr* .Hov vr th de -IAsv vus fu-bl'c ) h a ei h m n r ihs lv ,b
17 9 and tlk IJirRvliin hc ea n191
Th ar)e5ro tot 5 o itd wt h c ar ij ig D h a b: I ito r h m U
CIr~ n Nilir wib fIc an r n il.S-ip u a y m r.v r c v7 u ha
former~~ ~ ~ ~ enld* esncle ~idhE uaow oeb:c ) ii rd vnet h
%-.rot-: A; c-,,v e eS a ,cT a eoz u NIo A Y-;0 W iI aSi ~ 1~q -~ h
I ri s EsD U rc 2P -IC)Slv e3 cne nc arp t5w ecis i3ue tIoer
13i i to brn 4.,c toit 7n e o b lti- -5 v m on nq o p lolb e
.ip i r I I Clir vi Trl ,v -H l rr d R A ~ i f p -i --i,. 3 i a r r n FF n it i
N.I rn n a5 pr o oft en e -a oiht esa e rd ,a dVib r:r: o ln cA
brc ig Ta cI~o ~ ae l~inin .rnjl nII.Fl S-%a j e
inhi vcrd-am s s mn~l v r OP U'Sr (rl 10 lvI.U lIh1C I 94 ~a
exrenio ofU h -otrld~srain.D -fi, ila ; .,frtPi eM nse friia.
a idT)by 9 -2-18)a~ ie t: t u- ,:eai "l fihTF~i.r ae r
EUrpe i c n r i lj c i e i r s e t-5 -o h ~ o -e c i e t1-i -J ~ s :vi
od h c n n r i Icz ptaI m ott qh' ent cE~tur va5 Uil urO ,;IaU an
A triansrliSipt Cf the Par[ inle nT~ry act thai %~as passeda to end Mhe -SIa~e i rade on March 2 Sth.
JWU r. it wou Id be L IwtiLtre years before th~e britilsb abefitpici Df slavery, for which Wi lberforoe
and others als~o foughi. lks a point: ci Interesi, dhe Liade in slaves ro Trn did was outlawed by
Britain an 1806. Source. ww'w4pdavls.rN/tLegqIs_06.hNr
Excerpt fiDn thle Actfof the Abclitim of -.h RveTrade
'25th '4atct TE137.
T11housa~nd eight hui'idred and~sA, see-aII reuv-6upo' certain' Grcur~d therein metiodect ha-.e wcuK wthall
wuch Perb4. as rri~ihi be de~renc dvispl~e. And Whiem H is 'it upon all anid ecl-hf th GrQunc.mci rim t4d in se
smon RricWuilons,1h4- (te san-e k~ol 6t mofi-i l isd ar4 prohiL~iedrcrandd iclrcd to bt unlawfulI',
Frorn Mae 1I. 1 eoi tti Slawe ttaHe sh~all be atiolished..
Penally tar rading ir 04 pLr tba3ifl SIIVGS,&C. I OI~to eaCl 5 aV2,
Be rt Tierefore en.acTrndby the KInq s rmoo Excellent Majely, zin~d with :,hE Mvieanc Conwient of the 1.rrds Sir -
tuil akTri v tp-oM, and rrorn ors, n W~s' lptevPar iarnent meirribled, aadb* the 4Autior~ty of the sinThdt fro-n
3nd after the Frst Day of May Oine 1ibousand eiilht hundred and iewii the Aft ican SizveTradp, ard all Enoal ~I mimner
Df deZURir and tradif ~i thie o'uI~hise. 5ale,.Dartelr orTrariierof SlaveL~ or ol Perscirili ljtnitle to be 5cId.,tra5f~erre.dL
.~t r d alr With A4 (iteu nt Cakr nr~tlM mi ;vktner~ wfrnrriany Pan M thp Cia~t ey CnunitrpInf, (ric.hiI
hR~knri tIbP ;arrmp ii hprp#liy iatnprfy ihn~iddperil rwhiftp'drd diud.r-rl in hp inhiydi &mr;l:;rl ~Irh iht alI Anc ;111 minrbpr
!;f diai;Ii ri tier 1:y w~vl Pgirltaip, l# Rar-tor, or Trarfkro by rwans of AnV ~ohw ConWa Q,' A mwen -
e'mi, rel,):inq to a~iy %waes, or to an' Person5 Intendled to be used oi dealt with is Staves, iro te Firp~o~e ofsduch
Slr~ren- or rer30FIS being removed o trrn-p~orted either imrmediatel) or byTram-iihymerrt at Sen or cthervrisE directly
Dr ii-mdir-e'ti) ftrom AfuiiL -pr from ani IWUI4 Cog nriyrerritqi)6p ~r ?I~ wha.tevek in irlthi YWes Irdie*, cc in any other
part ofkA tlk.,not -ek In the Nm D lio co~ce5v~v Dc upaticnof lI A Ma~e~tytoany other Iar-0,Coqjntry,
Trrwry~im Rlme wtot a3vr, is here~y in like manner umnlyI abolt~heci, prohboIxecland c~reid t,: be unItwrfuI; andI if
mny 0l H1i Majesty's Subjecrs.or any Person of fterso resider! wtrtin this United 4zirgdom, or ary or( the sLandi,
olorles, mlnion's oxr lefrribes thereto WN or)q cr~c. or in Hi! Majeites Qwp~tiorI or Fosseis5k,al "J~Ito ano~
after 1the Day aroixsiad, by hiri wr thermdves. Cr be' Ii C4 thei- Factorsor Rgp-rkts or orherw se howNivr~deal or
trade in, puidiase, sdl, barter~or transfer, or contract or Egree kwc the dealing or traiirg ii pu rtdiasing, -tell ing, bartcr-
Ing ot tr-rnsfeirnq of ainy flve rSccso an Reirw or Perw5iorntexked -1o be -41d, tra n5ferred, t~sel, or dealt Wi4th
as 4 Slave or Slaves c--ntrary toi Jbe -rubidbltiort of this Act. he or theyr so We-idling sh)1I -orfei t arid pay faq evefy such~
OffenCE ihe Stmii of One hundred Pourods of Iawfr I~orv-y orf GrEat 3ritain far each arnd ev~rv Sla'#e so punchasedl,
iold. e.a red.or iraisf~errd. or ontraTEdr c-r -~~ ISr h~~ o~v fo~U~H~
~ Hk ~e~ iir ~rr i~.~rr rffktwfr avi a or, the.IJrn r D~rneWr k~lI iftfr -. Ih Use of~ H'Mar
V'e~sels filed ou irt thi Kmindorn vy te Colanls&c for c.vr~kng on~ the SIave "fade hInal be forfeited.
ILird be it luinber eicted~thotfrpm and miter th ipid Frldt Pixyof May one thP!Mk tiq-t hUnoifd~ *n tg.i
Jiedl bt! ur~idWrw Fuor Oule U- 115 WMJinLy 5ubJt.tAur oniy llrsurt iii frun5 rm&kirt-1 withini Lhb tLbiIIml Klr;igidw.1 or
my Dlilie hWards Cclomle% Dorn-lnbris orlTeirtrrlesthereto bel~onglini orIn H1 Is jestv's Pos~session DT Occupidoli,
to lit out, maiir )avigateo cr to procure -,o bue littec! out mannirelWio navigateilror to 3e rorcerned in tie- fitt nc out,
k) wxinnwoi navinatIngor in it~e pck-wrmg lo be fltted ouAlmainnecao~ na teat~.ar Silporfe'isel tor the Fu~poe
lr as s is tin g in ot 0r being a mp4oyved i n tlhie ca n y ihnq o nM4tha ANuiaro5 Ia %* Trade, or in a-y cotlre r the Deaal ng, Trad ingof
-onc erns he reb y :3rchi bitc-d a nd deda red to be un larA uIEnd eye 5yShi p :r Vessel wtiich shalItifrofn ani Afte-tle D~ay
5foreiaidr be filled oit, %iarmed, nawiqatd, u~sed, or -emrnY* e by any iLch Subjec- or St.bkecs. Person Dr Peir~son or
n bi s o r t 1wit Xctouhtor wy h is o r the ir As s sta na-r or rooj r L me r)t fo r arry of the u ro oses aoriewAil. and by di s Act
iirchitiitEd., mcietIverwi-h all her 809t5 Gunrijackle,. Aiwarel, and Ftriiture-, siall beccmne ftrfeited, and may anc shall
him wielc and peawteutpd, ar% her-mr-aftr is irnitloned anc: prrideiA
Pcrsori prchi~i~tcfrom carrying as SI;ayus Inhabitants of Afrka -he YW~t llndiu2s, crAanic;, Fromr one Pivm to
anwftwr. r b~in ~nciirnod in rMqw~jth~m &c.
Oa!3elt employed in 3id, Ilermowu,ak&c to be fo-feked, a3 also -he Pvvrclpert:r Ifim Nay -Jnv.
Formal abolition o~f the 1TTA In Ijritain was, a mnajcr, worldwide step in the
Si renain of ellimlI nati ng !he trad e, s Inc~e B~r I ai1 was the I rad in g su re rpme r of ttie
caV'. Sorre C~CUntfies, like Denmiark, had 3bolished the 1TEA before the Britilsh-
Other co~untries such as, Francce, Spain~ and Portugal &till traded legally under lh~ler
countries'1 laws, decades after 1807 before they, oua, albolishehd the trans-Atlantic
trade ir enslav'ed humoars or t'ielr vessels. Howe',er, 3 fully accurate timeline of
tho real rF~.c.Inn nf thp TrFik In lti; innIlrty wn id~ hip giujA-'r~rli at h~mr, 'qInec'
even in the case of the Dritish, the illegal slave tradk inl enslaved people persisted
h:r decades.
Chronology of the Abolitions of Slavery
.J. .. -
I,.~. I> nr ~ jri.X' Fr~ ty, J~r'. kle,.t,
'ANAe~: 4h"trIrri- iii e~~
.4 Jr. 1
Mctll1 e4ilJIYW flls~r Pniml '.e ihlI Wei ler'; 1,r.4
ft~rwi all Nijalir
L~~tn .1S~r 'n1. Ir 1.1
ti.. 1- f r...1-.- 9 4-'rr.,.r. ii, -X~r rIrt 0 '
eLiWr.. .At4 bI II,
Mir,.t. q.w1,Sm ~n ic
1...S WA.I.YIulp.ji' i.n
0- .in 1,pz
I5~~~~~.~ IcIii~ ,r~ I I r L -'c' -i %e ~ i ,I V, of
LVFO ~ ~ Iin~ rr-or -ntir-ri;mArVq
b*. i___6- A_ U CtIid i .4'lii.. ... it I 6. '121 I J+. .1-I.
.!LI Dformhu ~ Te I (I ti r i f (2A1'r4CJ It I'A Jwijji v4.Afl I~1 rib 1 A.4I j-r
20 c*iq M-' vl .A4 -A'I -,11 P"'Aihn, cc,,
IF- Il p I
Timi I ir ncf A'3al 'von; S'uurc* Stra.ggle Agr~snst
5.livcry Isrtgrnaiugrwig Year to' Coarirneway-arat
the Stiugly Again'st Sianwery and Its Aitofitior
UNESCO, 2 004., The i mages of thie woman iond
man are exam~ples of image-s o~f the resA sliarce~
F4 + TO lr
"0O2 D %4.1
F"IO
HIM
103. IffI
Oil"
uJAJ
Caribbean writers have long 'eflected oI the enormity and impact of the TTEA and
its aftermath, In the twentieth century, tle St. Lucian writer and Nobel Laureate
Derek Wakott penned a poem entitled The Sea is History n1979) which reflects or
the nature cf ihe TTEA and the ensuing struggle for the descendants of forced mi-
gration to this area of the world to understand their past. As Caribbean people w t"
a history of enslavement and irdentureship, there is a need for us to remember the
philosophy of the Sankofa -ionk to the past to understand the future
The Sea Is -islory
Where are cu r monumrents, yaur battles, martyrs?
Whe m i i your tri bal memryc'? Si ri,
in ~that grey au It. I hie sea. I lhe sea
hai 1ocKeal them Up. The seaIi 1I siry.
r i rt, there wiias &.e he~vng ail,
tri-, i 1e a I ght at the en~d of a lurnel,
the lantern of a ca rave"
aril that was 1G est.
Therl there were the packed Cries,
the sh it, the moia~ntrg;
Ex-:dijs.
gone si1dleredl sy corI t bon-n,
mantled byr the~ benediction of the shark's 5iadcrw,
that was tie Ark of the Covenriat.
Then came from the plucked wires
of sunlightl on -the sea -loor
the plangtnrt harp oF the Dabyloniarn bondaye.
as the white cowr cs clu~s-cnmd IlIkt a nacinc s
on the drowned women,
arid those were the ivorv braceIe'!
of the SorIq of Solomon,
but tie oceai tept turnirg blank pages
loo king for WS-lsory.
whe san~k withcziut tcrnb3,
brigarids who barme:uad cattie,
leavriot th-2ircI'arred rib t~ke 3alm leaves an t~h@
sho~re.
then the fo~aminig, rabid maw
ot t~he tidal wa,6 swallowine PRM Royal,
arii that wasJcnah,
bmtwitat v isr yuu. Rkridiz.4Ar?
Sir, it is locked ii therr sea san&id
wherLe tiea man-o'-war floated dawi;,
5trup cm t'iese goiggle5. 111 guide you the re myse If,
Wt5 all subtle and submarine,
ihtotigi caIonrades or coral,
to wlicrc the crus-y groupcir, cnyx eyed
blin kr. weighted bV its, je~mels, like a bald queen:
ard these g roi red cavas with barnacles
are cur cathed -als.
ard the f urnact before the hurricanes:
GomorraH_ Fories~tiLrid be wlindmills
iin-* rrarlI anid (Qmrnaal,
ard that was Lapr~ertations -
that ovas ius. Larreritaitioris,
it vas nlot H story
then came, lie scumn on the river's drin;~g lip,
nuk!ntl Irig anid congealing Into towns,
ar at 4avning!, the M~e choir%,
ard above them,. the s~pires
lancing the side of God
as His son sat, ard that w~as the New Testament-
Ther c~rne ihe wIile vsI5er~ir cazping
to the wavc!' proyrt s 3
ard th~t was E-neriapation
jlrihii-!lrl COjUXTihilwi -
as the seas lace dries in the sun.
but that was niot -witory.
that iva only fainh,
ArP khei diwAJ i~ i uk Up(A ijtL- itN qwis 'isi.q i.
then came the syrio.J of flies.
then came the serr4itaria, heroin,
then~ came the bullfrog baIhinviig for a ol2
firef lies with bright ideas
ard bats like jetting ambassadors
arid the rr ar tls, like khaki p01 ce,
c4anhining aac-i ca closclv.
ard then n the dark- ear-_ of ferns;
ard in Ihe salt chiiccd of rods
with tha ir sea pool s. there wa & the s ou nd
I ike a ru motr witI.oi t arrf -Echo
of Hisiofy, meally begin n1,lg,
Sciurma Tha Star-Appis Rii~osrmw
Derek Walcott, 1!7
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Modern Day Slavery
Modern day slaves. You wouldn't know it, but many live among us. Poor
children are "adopted" by rich households, then forced into domestic slavery
or sexual exploitatinn. Men arp dpecived hy prominmke.. nF gnnd jobs, only to
have their documents taken away and forced Into backbreaking labour.
Women are promised work as waitresses or maids, then forced Into
prostitution.
If you know someone who has been lured, trapped, tricked, threatened or
imprisoned by an employer or family member, they could be a victlrm of
human trafficking-modern day slavery. You can help them.
Together, we can end slavery... again.
4-
flMFfSTIC SFRVIT1inFF
Vit.lrims may be ror.ed
into takirg care of chil-
dren fiouse cleaning,
launcrq or othe, do-
mestic ta;ks, sometimes
accompanied by sexual
exploitation.
FORCED LA3CUR
Victims are fc'rcec to
work for little or no pay,
often Lnder brutal con-
ditions, in agriculIure
rninrlg. rnn;trurtinn,
i1shirg, stores, 'iarkets
and restaurants
SEXUAL SLAVERY
Victim are forced into
various forms of sexual
exploitation, inc uding
exotic dancing, strip
tease, pornography and
piu5liLuLiuii.
Tragically, the world has not been able to rid
tsel' of slavery. It still occLrs in many forms, as
this poster o' the Interrnaional Labour
Drganizztion indicates. 11 is up to eaci of us as
ndividudls to try tC Ltjrtr bute ut ts ellmiriation
n whatever way we can.
GUNMI "OIL= 1U
GkVU1248 =1551=22
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nMi NU=NI~L
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