Canadian author, Lawrence Hill, penned "Book of Negroes" in 2007, for those of you who haven't read it this is a book that you cannot put down. I'm prefacing this post with the fact that I have read this book (among others about the slave trade) and it may make me a little pensive in the writing, just like I was pensive the whole day today. It could be that I was still reeling from actually doing the canopy walk at Kakum, but I needed a little time by myself last night. I walked down to the ocean and stood and looked out over the vast expanse wondering if there was much difference from the look of the ocean in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Probably not. I could see Elmina castle (St. Georges Castle) in the distance, a place that best be remembered forever for the number of lives lost in it's stone dungeons and the number of lives forever changed as the slaves left their homeland through the "door of no return." This was a powerful experience, one that I liken to Sandy's and my tour of Auschwitz in 2012. So many souls left this earth in this structure, it's almost palpable as you walk through it. Our guide told stories as we entered each area-here, there were at least 150 women, children and babies with four small pots in each corner to relieve themselves....here is where the governor stood as the women were brought out into the yard for him to choose one....here is where the men were thrown who tried valiantly to revolt-only left to die with no food or water. It could be up to three months that these men, women and children sat in the filth of this place before the ship came to take them away. To what? Fates worse than death in many cases. Three months. The strength of the people echoes in the walls.
I'm reminded again how many times that humanity has been lost. How many times people have turned a blind eye to something so utterly wrong....you can only pray for the souls and hope that you have the strength to not turn a blind eye in the face of a travesty like this.
Having experienced Auschwitz as you did Deb, makes this story so meaningful. I can imagine the feeling you had walking through this place learning of the stories of suffering. I believe we have to continue to share stories like this so the world knows and can help prevent them from reoccurring in the future.
ReplyDeleteShan