The transatlantic slave trade is the longest lasting forced migration in history. Lasting from the 15th century to the end of the 19th century, the trade was responsible for the of between 12-15 million people being transported from Africa to the Western Hemisphere. During this time African men, women, and children were kidnaped from their home, torn away from their families and shipped halfway across the world to unknown lands. These voyages took anywhere between six to eight weeks, totalling over 4,000 miles. The Africans forced to make these journeys on these crowded ships were barely kept alive. Each space that they were kept in was approximately five feet three inches high and four feet four inches wide. People were packed so close that …show more content…
The main reason was profit. Slaves in the US alone did over a quarter billion hours of free labor. Transatlantic slavery was basically triangular. At one point on the triangle was Europe. Manufactured and luxury goods from Europe such as textiles, guns (and gunpowder), knives, copper kettles, mirrors and beads were taken across to the west African coast. This coast was the second point of the triangle. On the west African coast, the goods from Europe were exchanged for enslaved Africans. Ships forcibly transported enslaved Africans to the Americas – the third point of the triangle. Upon a slaving ship’s arrival in the Americas, the enslaved Africans were landed and exchanged for goods such as sugar, tobacco, rice, cotton, mahogany and indigo. The ship then returned to Europe.In fact in a scene from the movie Amazing Grace, the men of parliament were upset and accusing William Wilberforce of trying make them broke. He said that if slavery comes to end they will lose their fortune and their lives and livelihood depended on it. Therefore we see the importance of slave trade in …show more content…
Novels like Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852), by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811–1896), were widely recognized as a major cause of people in the North turning so strongly against slavery. This anti slavery novel illustrates the reality of slavery during that time. Stowe’s novel, also humanized slaves by making Christianity a central focus of their lives. This made her novel the best selling book of that time next to the bible. Stowe established a commonality with devoutly Christian whites of that era and used her novel asserting that Christian love can overcome something as destructive as enslavement of fellow human beings. Moreover her novel implies that Christianity condemns the immorality of slavery, further isolating those who support the institution. As a result, people did not want to be seen as sinners so they began to turn away. Without this Christian Movement slavery would still go