Middle Passage Dbq

The Middle Passage was the voyage from Africa to the West Indies. Also, 6 million Africans were transported out of Africa. About 2 million Africans died as a result of the Middle Passage and approximately 15% of them died on the voyages. Therefore, the Middle Passage was a very dangerous and difficult voyage considering how the slaves were treated and the ship’s conditions. An example of how the Middle Passage was a dangerous and difficult voyage was how the slaves were treated. The slaves suffered from diseases such as the flux. For example, evidence shows “Two of the white man offered me food, and on my refusing to eat, one of them held me fast by the hands and the other laid me across I think the windlass, and tied my feet, while the other flogged me severely”(Esquino 5-6-7-8). This means that the slaves were beaten very severely for not eating their food. This is important because it shows how slaves were being treated during the Middle Passage. Also, there was many space restrictions for the slaves and …show more content…
It was a very hard for anybody to survive with the ship’s conditions. For example “There happened such sickening and mortality among my poor man and the Negroes. Of the first we buried 14, and of the last 320 which was a great detriment to our voyage” (Phillips 1-2-3). This means that because of the ship conditions many of the slaves and whites died on the voyage. This is important because since many people died on the voyage there was a big financial loss. Also, the ships were not clean at all and not well taken care of at all. For example “They suffered from heat, thirst and a lack of hygiene. Even the whites had difficulty with these things” (Portuguese Textbook 8-9-10). This means that both the slaves and whites had difficulty with the ship’s conditions. Therefore, the Middle Passage was a dangerous and difficult voyage considering the ship’s