In Stonetown we saw the site of the former Slave Market of Zanzibar… this was really hard for me experience.
Whereas in the U.S. the slave traders & owners were predominately from European countries, in Zanzibar they were predominately Arab and Indian. It was interesting to hear about how the history of slavery in Zanzibar affected and continues to affect race relations there. The Black/Arab issues of inequality, access, education disparities, socioeconomic status, etc. sounded very similar to Black/White issues in the U.S… which makes sense considering the comparative histories.
Upon entering the chambers where they kept the slaves, I suddenly felt overwhelmed. Listening to the tour guide explain how the Africans (mostly from Eastern and Central Africa) were treated while sitting in the holding chamber was extremely emotional. As much as I already know about how horrendous slavery was and some of the horrible things that were done (esp being an African American Studies major in undergrad), I still was just completely overwhelmed. I didn’t hear anything I didn’t already know, or see anything I didn’t know existed, but reading about it in a book is one thing… seeing an actual whipping post, a “disposal hole”, iron collars (like dog collars), chains cemented in the walls, and actually going inside of the holding chamber is something completely different.
In this pic, I’m sitting in the holding chamber for men. This chamber would hold 50+ men, likely curled up in the fetal position (I wanted to be in the picture so you could get an idea of size).
Whereas in the U.S. the slave traders & owners were predominately from European countries, in Zanzibar they were predominately Arab and Indian. It was interesting to hear about how the history of slavery in Zanzibar affected and continues to affect race relations there. The Black/Arab issues of inequality, access, education disparities, socioeconomic status, etc. sounded very similar to Black/White issues in the U.S… which makes sense considering the comparative histories.
Upon entering the chambers where they kept the slaves, I suddenly felt overwhelmed. Listening to the tour guide explain how the Africans (mostly from Eastern and Central Africa) were treated while sitting in the holding chamber was extremely emotional. As much as I already know about how horrendous slavery was and some of the horrible things that were done (esp being an African American Studies major in undergrad), I still was just completely overwhelmed. I didn’t hear anything I didn’t already know, or see anything I didn’t know existed, but reading about it in a book is one thing… seeing an actual whipping post, a “disposal hole”, iron collars (like dog collars), chains cemented in the walls, and actually going inside of the holding chamber is something completely different.
In this pic, I’m sitting in the holding chamber for men. This chamber would hold 50+ men, likely curled up in the fetal position (I wanted to be in the picture so you could get an idea of size).
This pic is of the female chamber. It’s slightly bigger because the women needed to get in and out easily so that the traders (men) could have “access” to them whenever they wanted. The women’s chamber held 75+ women.
This is covering the “disposal hole” where deceased slaves would be thrown away.
This sculpture (by some students from Bagamoyo Arts College, I think) shows how iron collars were used. This experience was really painful, but I’m also glad that I had the opportunity to actually see these things… it made it so real. Especially knowing that that’s a part of my own family history (likely not via Tanzania though, more likely via the West African Trade) was just overwhelming. Looking back at the pics, I think this was the only time I wasn’t smiling since I’ve been here…
