Transatlantic slave trade (16th-19th)

 

In a Cotton Field of South Carolina.

The transatlantic slave trade was a system of human trafficking that took place between the 16th and 19th centuries. It involved the capture, transport, and sale of millions of Africans to European colonies in the Americas.

How did it work?

It was based on a triangular trade system between three continents:

1. Europe: Ships departed with manufactured goods (weapons, textiles, alcohol) to trade in Africa for enslaved people.

2. Africa: People were captured, often by other Africans allied with Europeans, and sold to slave traders. They were then transported under inhumane conditions to the Americas in what was called the “Middle Passage.”

3. The Americas: Enslaved people were sold and forced to work on plantations growing sugar, cotton, tobacco, and other crops. The products were then shipped to Europe, completing the trade cycle.

Consequences

• Death and suffering: Millions died during the journey or while enslaved.

• Impact on Africa: Entire regions were depopulated, and societies were destabilized.

• Legacy in the Americas: The African diaspora influenced culture, music, religion, and society across the continent.

The transatlantic slave trade was legally abolished in the 19th century, though slavery itself persisted in some countries until later that century.

"Tuesday, July 30, 2008, the U.S. House of Representatives issued an unprecedented apology to black Americans for the institution of slavery, and the subsequent Jim Crows laws that for years discriminated against blacks as second-class citizens in American society..."