Public Misinformation About The Atlantic Slave Trade

The Atlantic slave trade started in 1501. This is when the first Portuguese ship transported the first African slaves into Brazil. This practice continued until 1875, when the Europeans
Atlantic Slave Trade

The Atlantic slave trade started in 1501. This is when the first Portuguese ship transported the first African slaves into Brazil. This practice continued until 1875, when the Europeans ended the last trade route with the Americas. Many people will tell you that this was the first slave trade in history, but what they leave out, either due to lack of knowledge or intentionally, is that the slave trade practice dates way more back in history. The oldest documented record of slave trading dates to 2500 BCE. It was taking place in the Indian Ocean and kept going on until 1910. Trading slaves is a historical practice common to all our predecessors, regardless of color or race.

The Beginnings Of The Atlantic Slave Trade

In addition, the Atlantic Slave trade was not practiced in the manner portrayed to the public in the mainstream media and other popular sources. What you are told is that the Africans were kidnapped by the Europeans, and then forcefully brought into the Americas. The Portuguese did try this tactic, but after a few raids, they were forced to abandon it. By whom? By the massive resistance coming from the African sailors. Additionally, the Portuguese did not have to exert much effort in obtaining slaves, because the Africans gladly did the work. 

 

Getting enslaved was a common practice among the Africans already. The Africans enslaved their own people within their tribes as punishment, e.g., for stealing. Another common African practice was to make slaves out of prisoners of war. The African tribes found the Portuguese interest in obtaining slaves as a good opportunity to make money and in many cases rid their tribes of problems. They simply brought the slaves to the coast and sold them to the Portuguese. It was a win/win for both sides of these transactions. Soon thereafter, other European entrepreneurs jumped on this business opportunity.

Cultural Integration

Another less publicly known historical statistic is that majority of slaves from Africa were not transported to the US. However, well over 90 percent of slaves from Africa were “imported” to the Caribbean and South America. What some people feel to be true as well, is that there was no resistance to this sort of enslavement, but there were hundreds of rebellions against the Europeans.

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