Olaudah Equiano Influence On Slavery

The Atlantic slave trade began in the fifteenth century and continued for more than two hundred years. “The slave trade was a vital part of world commerce. Every European empire in the New World utilized slave labor…” Many Africans were taken from their homes and forced to do manual labor. Olaudah Equiano was one of these people. He was kidnapped at age eleven by slave traders then transported to Barbados on a tremendously crowded ship. After his time there, he was sold to a Virginian plantation owner. A British captain purchased him changed his name to Gustavus Vassa and allowed him to join the Royal Navy and fight in the Seven Years War. He eventually bought his freedom and settled in London where he wrote the narrative of his life. In …show more content…
Most of the slaves were kidnapped or stolen from their original homes. They had no idea where they were going or for what reasons. They also had no clue who their kidnappers were. This was happening at the same time as original contact so people from different countries are just now experiencing other races and languages. Equiano says this, “Their complexions too, differing so much from ours, their long hair, and the language they spoke…” He had never seen anyone who looked like his kidnappers. Equiano does not know why he is on the ship until midway through text where he says, “…they gave me to understand we were to be carried to these white peoples country to work for them.” The ship rides across the Atlantic were miserable for everyone aboard. The crew of the ship was especially hateful to the slaves, and the crew did not view the slaves as actual people. The crew forced the slaves into tiny spaces where the slaves could barely move. Also, the crew did not offer any kind of healthcare to the slaves, so many of the slaves got sick and died. Lastly, the crew refused to tell the slaves any information about anything. Given these points, I believe the crew of the ship viewed the slaves as cargo rather than actual human