Across the oceans

I hope your journey wasn’t to shaky, I’m Majdeline and I’ll be your captain from now on.

Like you can see outside we just arrived on the African coasts. Hot, Exotic & Wild, that’s where the last moment of freedom & humanity ends for African people who will go from Man to Merchandise.

So right before boarding, the chosen slaves are stored in some kinds of infamous stores called “Barracks”.

They underwent a complete and thorough meticulous anatomical examination, which spared no organ. Then came the branding & the embarkation of the captives on canoes to the ship.

Caught by desperation & helplessness, slaves take advantage of a moment of inattention to jump into the water and drown, crossing the ship’s bridge, leaving their native soil. Others choke on their own hands.

The Life conditions on board were unbearable for the slave.

The steerage, the space between the two bridges, that’s 1, 90 m high (size of max), was converted into a “Negro” Park. Scaffolds were installed to double the capacity of the boat.

Naked against each other’s in no more than a third of a square meter for each.

They couldn’t stand and barely sit. They often choked and injured each other because of the sea moves.

The already unsupportable pile-up turned into a damp & nauseating promiscuity when seasickness & bad weather got involved. The water could ruse into the steerage.

The Vomit & excrement that spilled out of the pots soiled everything, making nutritional deficiencies. The lack of hygiene & confinement a great source of diseases.

Once every few weeks, they were brought to the upper bridge to stretch their legs, be washed by sea water & cut their hairs & nails.

Sometimes they had to dance to divert the crew.

As you can imagine death mortality was very high, between 10 to 20%.

The two main causes, beside piracy & bad weather, were scorbut which is a lack of vitamin C craved by the body & the typhus.

And when a slave got too sick to be sold “it” was thrown into the sea.

More than a million  , slave & crew confounded,  died from those diseases.

To me, This conditions show how messed up the world was & worked.

But let’s leave this suffering coasts to sail toward the west Indies and their beautiful islands with the smiling Emeline.

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