Slavery was not an invention of the West but rather a practice present in almost every civilization throughout history. Proof of slavery anteceded written records and dating back over 11,000 years. This widespread phenomenon has spanned nearly all civilizations, this includes ancient Egypt, China, Mesopotamian empires, the Persian Empire, ancient Israel, Greece, the Roman Empire, and ancient India. Additionally, slavery existed in Arab Islamic caliphates and Sultanates, as well as pre-Columbian civilizations of the Americas.

Slavery in antiquity arose from various forms. These included debt bondage, where individuals were enslaved due to unpaid debts or financial obligations. Penal servitude was another form, where criminals were sentenced to slavery as punishment. War captivity was common, with people captured during conflicts and war becoming slaves. Social abandonment also played a role, leaving vulnerable abandoned or orphaned children open to enslavement. Finally, hereditary enslavement ensured that children born to enslaved parents inherited slave status.

Africa's history of slavery predates European involvement by centuries. The continent endured ten painful centuries of Arab slavery before an additional four centuries of European slavery. The East African slave trade began before the advent of Islam, initiated by Arabs and marking the beginning of this tragic era. Eastern Africans and Arab enslavers sold Africans across vast trade networks, primarily targeting fellow East Africans. The spread of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula led to increased slavery in North Africa.

Islam's permissibility of enslaving non-Muslims contributed to its growth in popularity, and Muslim armies conquered vast territories by 633 CE, including Egypt, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, and parts of Iran and Turkey. In 650, Caliph Uthman's rule saw the prohibition of enslaving fellow Muslims, but not non-believers or those opposing Islam. The Caliphates' power in the 7th century solidified slavery as an organized venture in Africa, starting in Darfur in 652.

A peace agreement obligated the Sudanese leader to pay an annual tribute of hundreds of African slaves to Arab invaders, a practice that continued for centuries. Arab slavery gradually expanded to some part of sub-Saharan Africa, with many enslaved Africans sold to Mediterranean and Middle Eastern civilizations. A small percentage were taken to North Africa, leading some Africans, particularly in North Africa, to convert to Islam as a means of protection against enslavement.

After 10 centuries of Arab slavery in Africa, primarily in northern Africa, eastern regions and some parts of sub-Saharan Africa, the Arab invasion of West Africa's rainforest coast posed significant challenges. The dense forest terrain, unlike the north and east Africa which is mostly savanna. This hindered Arab armies and cavalry, leading them to focus on more accessible and familiar regions.

In west Africa, just like other civilizations, historical records indicate slavery has been in practice since the 13th century, long before European arrival mainly as a result of tribal and inter-tribal war of kingdom expansion but the Portuguese initiated transatlantic slave trade in the West Africa's coast, including Nigeria, in the late 15th century.

The Portuguese Empire, one of Europe's longest-lived colonial empires, began in the 15th century and expanded globally. In the late 15th century, a labor shortage arose in the New World (North, Central, South America, and the Caribbean) to cultivate sugarcane, cotton etc. Native populations struggled with the rigorous labor, prompting a search for alternative workforce sources.

Catholic Bishop Bartolome de las Casas suggested Africans as the ideal labor source due to their perceived strengths, hard work, resilience, adaptability to new climates, immunity to diseases, and supposed controllability. These criteria led to the targeting of Africans for slavery.

In the late 15th century, Portuguese explorers arrived in West Africa, ostensibly seeking gold and ivory but actually initiating the transatlantic slave trade. They employed a strategy combining religion, gifts, and money, similar to Arab methods in its religious aspect. Prince Infante Dom Henrique, who is also dubbed as ‘Prince Henry the Navigator’, was instrumental in the establishment of the slave trade in Lagos around 1444.

June 18, 1452, marks a pivotal day in the history of African slavery. On this date, Pope Nicholas V promulgated the papal bull Dum Diversas. proclaiming that Catholic nations had the authority to condemn enemies of Christ to eternal slavery. Ironically, this decree primarily targeted Africans who were not hostile towards Christianity, but rather unaware of the christian religion.

The Portuguese continued their slave trade expansion along West Africa's coast, targeting the region due to its ease of accessibility via the Atlantic Ocean. Their strategy was designed to exploit local populations, employing the same religious tactics Arabs had used to enslave North Africans. This tactic effectively facilitated the enslavement of Africans.

An African-American reader of my book, "The Escapades of Abisogun," who bought the book on Amazon contacted me  with a thought-provoking question. He praised the book's portrayal of Abisogun as a fearless warrior, acknowledging its historical fiction genre while also recognizing the accuracy of the African warrior culture depicted. He then asked, "Given the strength and bravery of African warriors, how did Europeans subdue Africa so easily and enslave its people for many years?"

I explained that European slavers, who arrived on West Africa's coast had no intention of venturing deep inland, faced three significant challenges; Fear of diseases and insect-borne illnesses due to limited medical advancements at the time. Two, unfamiliarity with West Africa's dense forest terrain, unlike Muslim Arabs who knew North Africa's landscape and most importantly awareness of West African warriors' fighting skills and resistance when united.

To overcome these challenges, Europeans exploited existing divisions among west African kingdoms, which were already engaged in wars for territorial expansion. They collaborated with willing African leaders, mostly kings who sold fellow Africans into slavery in exchange for guns and gunpowder to fuel their own wars. Also mirrors, alcohol, beads, cloth etc are traded for slaves.

The primary suppliers of slaves were African kings, warriors, and the wealthy elite. Initially, the slaves were mainly victims of war and captives of conflict, a consequence of the long history of inter-kingdom wars and territorial expansion that predated the arrival of the Portuguese. African kingdoms had been engaging in fierce battles for dominance and territory, resulting in a steady supply of war captives who were then sold or traded into slavery. This tragic reality facilitated the transatlantic slave trade, as European slavers exploited these existing divisions and conflicts to fuel their own demand for slaves.

The transatlantic slave trade escalated as European demand for sugar and cotton surged, leading to an increased need for labor. African slaves consistently met expectations. The demand for more slaves resulted in fueling wars waged solely to capture more slaves. This brutal cycle stimulates slave raiders who kidnapped, degraded, and enslaved their fellow neighbor. Additionally, artifacts, crafts, ivory and gold were looted alongside slaves by the Europeans.

During the Renaissance, Portugal dominated the global economy, thanks to its advanced navigation, exploration, and conquests. However, the Anglo-Spanish War (1585-1604) and the Battle of Swally (1612) marked the beginning of Portugal's decline. The British East India Company's victory over the Portuguese signaled a shift in power towards Western Europe, with Britain's influence growing.

As Portuguese power waned, other nations ventured into cultivating and producing sugar, cotton, and tobacco. They faced the same labor challenges and adopted the Portuguese template by turning to African slaves, particularly from West Africa, where slave trading had become entrenched as African leaders and sellers were always willing to enslave and sell their fellow Africans.

The British arrival on West Africa's coast marked a significant shift in the slave trade. Unlike the Portuguese, who introduced Catholicism, the British brought Anglicanism. Initially, slave trading was a minor business, but the British transformed it into a large-scale operation with a new format. Great Britain was the originator  of what is called The triangular trade, also known as the triangle trade. A system of three-way transatlantic exchanges that lasted for 300 years (16th to 19th centuries).

The triangular trade involved three regions: Europe, Africa, and the New World (North, Central, South America, and the Caribbean). It operated in three stages:

1. Europe to Africa: European goods like guns, gunpowder, cloth, alcohol, and tobacco were shipped to the West Africa coast and traded for slaves, mostly through barter systems. Slaves captured by fellow Africans or purchased from local slavers will be exchanged or traded for these products. 
2. Africa to the New World: Slaves were transported to the north, central and south America and Caribbean Islands, along with remaining European goods. Ship merchants sold slaves and the goods to plantation owners.

III. Americas to Europe: Slaves were sold to plantation owners, and commodities like sugar, molasses, cotton, tobacco, rum, rice, lumber, animal pelts, and more were purchased and shipped to Europe, concluding the triangular movement. This cycle repeated for 300 years.

Africans endured 1,400 years of slavery, including 1,000 years of pain and agony in the hands of Arab slavers, 100 years of sorrow under Portuguese slave traders, and 300 years of slavery under British and other European powers. The countries that dominated the transatlantic slave market until the 18th century were Great Britain, Portugal, and France.

Initially, Queen Elizabeth I opposed capturing Africans against their will, but later lent Royal Ships to slaving expeditions after seeing the huge profits available. However, abolitionism emerged as one of Britain's first lobbying movements. In 1787, the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade came into existence.

It also took the efforts of African writers and activists, notably Olaudah Equiano, who joined forces with influential figures like William Wilberforce MP and Thomas Clarkson to vehemently denounce and stand against the slave trade and its brutality. These writers, former slaves themselves, wrote about their horrific experiences. Abolitionists argued that ending the slave trade would save lives, open new markets, and stop an immoral practice.

Despite pro-slavery opposition highlighting the economic importance of Caribbean plantations, abolitionists presented strong arguments against the slave trade, including its immorality, humanitarian concerns, and economic benefits. They mobilized unprecedented public support through campaigns, petitions, lectures, and boycotts, ultimately hitting the slave trade's economic interests.

The abolitionist movement celebrated a major triumph early 19th century with a significant turning point in the fight against slavery, as Britain's Parliament took bold action in year eighteen hundred and seven, outlawing the exploitative slave trade through landmark legislation. Nevertheless, this landmark legislation fell short of freeing all enslaved individuals, as over 700,000 people remained in bondage within British Caribbean colonies.

Interestingly, opposition to slave abolitionism didn't only come from pro-slavery advocates in Britain, but also from some African kings who sought to maintain the profitable trade. Notably, two prominent African kings even petitioned the King of England to continue the slave trade. Although other Western European nations disagreed with abolition, Great Britain's dominant global influence deterred them from openly challenging its authority. Consequently, the slave trade went underground, with several high-profile attempts to defy Britain's ban ultimately failed.

Another factor contributing to the decline of slavery was the British Industrial Revolution (1760-1840), which brought innovative mechanization and significant social change. As Britain became the world's first industrialized nation, machines replaced human labor, reducing the demand for slaves and paving the way for the eventual abolition of slavery.

To set the record straight, Europeans did not invade West African streets to hunt slaves, as some may think. Instead, West African leaders sold their own people to Europeans. While conflicts did arise between Europeans and some African settlements, the majority of slaves were either sold to Europeans or exchanged for goods by fellow African.

In East Africa, Africa's birthplace of transborder slavery, local east Africans engaged in the sale of their fellow Africans to Arab slave traders. And the Trans-Saharan slave trade saw Muslim Arabs strategically utilizing African converts to Islam as intermediaries, enabling them to infiltrate and exploit additional African communities especially in north Africa.

The involvement of African kings in the slave trade is a complex and contentious issue, warranting careful consideration. While some African leaders and kings regrettably participated in the trade, many others demonstrated remarkable courage and resilience by actively resisting it, even sacrificing their lives in the process. Notably, numerous kings took a strong stance against slavery, refusing to sell their subjects or neighbors, and thereby protecting their communities from the brutal forces of exploitation. Likewise many anti-slavery heroes arose across Africa.

Africans are capable of resisting slavery if united, but their spirit of resistance was broken by division. Both Arabs and Europeans used division to their advantage. In North Africa, religion was used to divide, pitting converted Muslims against non-Muslims. In West Africa, religious and economic incentives motivated leaders and the affluent to sell neighbors' children into slavery.

Despite this division, historical records show that Africans resisted slavery. Between 1688 and 1807, slaves and local populations damaged nearly 20% of all slave ships. The Igbo Landing in 1803, where 75 Igbo captives revolted and chose death over enslavement, is another notable example of resistance. Many African communities also engaged Europeans in violent resistance, successfully repelling them. Tragically, many of these heroes were betrayed by their own kin, ultimately falling to their oppressors.

Slaves in the Caribbean deployed tactics like feigning illness, sabotage, damaging tools and violent insurrection to resist their enslavement. In a historic uprising, self-emancipated Haitian slaves defeated colonial forces and fended off European attacks, securing Haiti's independence in 1804 and forging the first black nation to achieve self-rule globally.

The Saharan and Atlantic slave traders both inflicted immense suffering on Africa, but their objectives, methods, religious aspects, and racist attitudes differed significantly.

Arab traders primarily sought domestic servants, soldiers, and eunuchs for their harems, whereas European traders had industrial-scale demands, seeking slaves solely for profit. Arab invaders conquered North Africa with horses and swords, offering Africans three options: convert to Islam, face death, or be taken as slaves. In contrast, European slave traders did not invade African streets but instead used local collaborators to hunt and exchange Africans for money or gifts.

During the Saharan trade and Arab expansion, conversion to Islam often provided Africans with a degree of protection from invaders, as they were then regarded as fellow Muslims. Just accepting Arab religion, customs and traditions could also offer a sense of belonging. In contrast, the conversion to Christianity during the transatlantic slave trade era presented a different scenario. European slave masters often used religion as a means to exert control over enslaved individuals' minds, aiming to subordinate their minds and maintain dominance. By accepting Christianity, enslaved people may have unwittingly facilitated their own subjugation, as their captors saw religious conversion as a key aspect of their strategy to maintain power and control. 

To maintain submission and control of slaves; suppressing slaves' cultural identities is also another task of European slave masters. Slaves were punished for speaking their languages, communicating, or praying according to their cultures, as this reminded them of their heritage, culture, roots and religion which posed a threat to slave masters. 

Remarkably, the Yoruba people successfully preserved their cultural heritage, traditions, and religious practices even after being forcibly taken from Africa, leaving an indelible mark on the Southern American and Caribbean regions. This makes them a unique exception among African tribes, as their cultural legacy continues to thrive in the New World to this day.

European slavery was also deeply rooted in racism, whereas Arab slaves could adopt Islam, and their children might not be slaves.

What's the purpose of writing this extensive article? 

Why revisit the dark chapter of slavery and its lingering impact on Africans, particularly West Africans like myself, who still grapple with Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome (PTSS)? However, while time may heal scars, understanding the root causes of our suffering is crucial for true healing. By confronting our past and acknowledging its ongoing effects, we can begin to learn from our collective experiences and move forward.

Regrettably, African leaders have failed to learn from history and continue to perpetuating a modern form of slavery in three ways:

Firstly, they prioritize their own comfort, indulging in luxurious lifestyles while their citizens struggle to access basic necessities. This is achieved through embezzlement, diverting resources meant for the masses to serve their own interests. Disconcertingly, this mirrors the actions of historical leaders who sold Africans into slavery for personal gain, disregarding the suffering and fate of their people. Just as those former kings prospered at the expense of their own people's misery, today's leaders similarly mirror the past, prioritizing personal gain and interest over the welfare of their people, thereby reinforcing a harmful dynamic of exploitation and neglect. 

Secondly, despite Africa's vast resources, many Africans are compelled to migrate to other continents in pursuit of better opportunities as a result of the bad leadership of the ruling class, only for some to encounter exploitation and racism from the same Arab and European nations that previously enslaved them. This stark reality echoes the painful history of African kings who forcibly sold their own people, including neighbors’ children, into slavery, condemning them to face brutality and death in foreign lands. The pattern of exploitation continues, as Africans are still forced to flee their homeland in search of a better life, only for some to face similar mistreatment and oppression.

Thirdly, Africa's significant debt to China and European nations is a cause for alarm, given the continent's numerous resources probably surpassing those of its creditors. Historically, when Europeans arrived on West Africa's coast, our ancestors possessed a wealth of resources, including gold, ivory, crafts and others, that can be traded. Yet, they chose to sacrifice their own people, selling them into slavery. Similarly, today's African leaders neglect the continent's abundant resources, preferring to borrow from other nations, thereby mortgaging the future of their unborn generations. This cycle of debt threatens to ensnare Africa in a modern form of slavery and enslavement. Paralleling the past, where leaders traded their children's lives for worthless items like alcohol, gunpowder and mirrors, today's leaders compromise our collective future for short-term gains, condemning Africa to debt slavery.

It is heartbreaking that the same religious ideologies used to enslave our ancestors still divide us today in Africa. Many people remain unaware that religion is a cultural construct, shaped by belief, tradition, and spiritualism. Each race and tribe promotes their own brand of religion, often at the expense of others. African beliefs are frequently deemed inferior, despite the fact that Judaism, which is the root of Islam and Christianity, borrowed significantly from African culture and traditions. This is not a condemnation or endorsement of any religion, but a call to recognize the harmful nature of religious division. If your faith leads you to see fellow Africans as enemies or unbelievers simply because they hold different beliefs, then you remain enslaved. True freedom lies in embracing our shared humanity and heritage.

What deeply saddens me is seeing North Africans, who were severely impacted by slavery, losing their cultural heritage, norms, and way of life to their Arab enslavers, yet they still manage to oppress and torment other Africans. Similarly, it is disheartening to see South Africans, who should be champions of love and understanding due to their own painful experiences, succumb to xenophobia and target fellow Africans. This irony is a painful reminder of the lingering effects of slavery and colonialism, which continue to divide Africa.

If your wealth, position, and status lead you to view fellow Africans as less human than yourself and prompt you to mistreat them, then you are indeed a slave and not the master you claim to be. That attitude is a classic example of an unrepentant slave mentality, where one's ego and entitlement blind them to the shared humanity of others.

Nothing epitomizes a slave mentality more than when you're ashamed of your language, culture, traditions, and roots. This is a affliction worse than slavery itself. As the legendary Robert Nesta Marley so eloquently put it, "Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds." When you reject your own heritage and identity, you're perpetuating a form of self-imposed bondage. True freedom begins with embracing and celebrating your authentic self, unshackled from the chains of shame and self-doubt.

African leaders must unite and strongly condemn all forms of modern slavery, which inflict intense pain and evoke the traumatic memories of our troubled past. These heinous practices include human trafficking, forced labor, sex slavery, racism, bonded labor/debt slavery, child labor, forced marriage, organ harvesting, domestic servitude, child soldiers, wage slavery, child domestic servitude, child molestation by guardians and parents, employment exploitation, forced begging, using children for street begging, woman enslavement against her will, online exploitation, and other forms of modern slavery including religion slavery. To combat these atrocities, we must raise awareness and foster international cooperation with global partners. Additionally, it is crucial to support survivors affected by these forms of modern slavery. My Emphasis is the importance of African leaders taking collective action.

It is a time for reflection, beckoning us to delve into our past, scrutinize our present, and envision a radiant future. The time has come for Africa to unite and reclaim its rightful place on the global stage. Until we embrace our shared identity and stand as one, Nigeria and Africa will remain stagnant. Let us transcend our differences and collectively strive to build nations where justice, peace, freedom and unity flourish. Together, we can forge a brighter tomorrow and make our black race proud.

Dr. Samuel Olanrewaju Bill

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The author of “The Escapades Of Abisogun”