As I continue on with my family history research and my homeland research, I have linked myself to several Nigerian newspapers. I try to read something every day, but that does not always happen. But tonight, I decided to see what was going on in Nigeria today. What I saw was a huge article about peoples in the Nigerian Diaspora of the last 2-3 decades being asked to return. This lead me to look up the Nigerian Diaspora, on to the the Diaspora, then on to the African Diaspora, and eventually to the Nigerian Slave Trade.
I was surprised at what I found. There was a lot of internal and then external slavery. Here is a quote that I found on this Web site:
It was confessed that the prospects of Trans Atlantic Slave Trade fueled into tribal wars in Yorubaland as the kings and slaves who had taken part of the European slave merchants' offer, went all out to wage war on the other towns and villages with the sole aim of getting slaves to be exchanged for wine and guns.
That truly saddens me. But it was what it was. As I continue to speak to friends and family members about my search, I get mixed reviews. Some people want to know and some people fear what uncovering the past may bring. Well, I already said once before, I know the dirty truth. I am now merely filing in the details.
The picture that I have included here is from the same Web site mentioned above. It is "The holding cell for men, used just prior to sending the men off to the boat". This is the photographer's reference for this picture.
I look at this picture and wonder; is this the last room that my family members, all those years ago, saw before he or she had to endure a horrific journey across the Atlantic to wherever they went before getting to this country (America). Is it?
I shudder to think.
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