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Modern Voices

Catherine Ancholou on the

difference between African slaveryand American slavery

Q: Describe the difference between African slavery and American slavery, from the point

of an African.

A: Well, you see, Equiano's family must have had their own

slaves, because every family of rich men had slaves. From research

on the way slaves were treated in Africa, I know that slaves were

treated almost like everybody else. There are certain things that the

slaves are not allowed to do. But they live in the compound, eat the

same food. Their children go to the stream and fetch water, all

together. They go to the forest and cut firewood. Everybody does

what everybody else does.

But the thing is the...lack of freedom is there. And the slave was

not free to leave the compound or homestead of his owner and go

to another homestead, or go home to his parents. And if he

attempted to escape, he would be perhaps sold or killed or

whatever. So, it was difficult for slaves to escape.

But then, by comparison to what happened to people who were

considered slaves in Europe and America, the people who were

being handled as slaves in Africa were in heaven. So I am saying

that, Equiano himself must have been living with slaves, playing

with the children of slaves in his father's compound, in his village,

going to the stream, fetching water with them, making friends with

them, eating with them. So, this of course would not have disposed

him to begin to imagine the kind of thing that would happen to him

outside Africa. So he would never have imagined the kind of thing

that happened to him. After he was removed, after he wascaptured, the worst he was expecting was death. But what his what

he got eventually was worse than death.

Catherine AncholouAssociate Professor ofEnglish LiteratureAwuku College of

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EducationNigeria