Along with Frederick Douglass, the most famous slave in history was probably Olaudah Equiano.  On Equiano’s Middle Passage, he shared space belowdecks with other Africans from possibly dozens of ethnic groups, speaking different languages. Once loaded into the ship’s hold, they were all outsiders.

Music by Kai Engel

Further Readings

Robin Blackburn, The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Modern, 1492-1800. London: Verso. 1997.

Marcus Rediker, The Slave Ship: A Human History. London: Penguin Books. 2007.

Vincent Caretta. Equiano, the African: Biography of a Self-Made Man. London: Penguin Books. 2005.

Selections from Snelgrave: “Slavery’s Defenders vs. the First Abolitionists”

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