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Transatlantic slave trade also known as triangular trade was responsible for the trafficking of Africans to the Americas. Triangular Trade is so named because of the three segments or legs of travel form a triangle. The first segment was from Europe to Africa where commodities were exchanged for African slaves, the second segment, dubbed the middle passage was the transport of African slaves to the Americas and the third segment was the transportation of merchandise from the Americas to Europe.
This paper will fully analyze and illustrate the concept of triangular trade, reflecting on the ole of racism as an ideology as well as the tendency to exploit immigrant or minority groups. In conclusion this essay will address the development of poverty in Africa due to the continuation of the Triangular Trade process over time. From the mid fifteenth century until the close of the nineteenth century Triangular Trade was responsible for millions of Africans being plucked from their homeland and being inhumanely transported to the Americas as slaves.
Triangular Trade involved the involuntary removal of Africans from Africa which included a large number of skilled craftsman as well as other men and women from a variety of vocations that contributed to the African society. These men and women were contributors to society and without them the African economy was weakened. Gold was a trading commodity in Africa but the Europeans destroyed African trade systems when they established the African slave trade.
Slaves being kidnapped and forcefully taken made it dangerous to mine gold. According to Alcott (n. D. ), “Since the introduction Of Triangular Trade African countries have never built up sufficient national lath to invest in their infrastructure and industry so that they can develop their countries properly’ (Para. 8). The middle leg or the notorious middle passage of the voyage would find the slave ship packed tightly with Africans awaiting departure in the Americas.
Black slaves would procure a large sum of money for the Europeans and death of a small number of them due to the inhumane travel conditions was not considered calamitous. Because of this brutal travel and treatment of the Africans many would question why slavery persisted for such a length of time. Principally because of the seeming economic significance, slavery was socially acceptable. Alcott (n . D. ) stated “Europeans were separated from Africans culturally and physically distancing themselves from the slave trade by writing Africans off as inn unman.
Emmer (1995) wrote: Unlike the ancient world where color was not an issue and whites enslaved other whites in the African Triangular Trade all slaves were black and all owners were white. Racism or the idea that blacks because Of the color Of their skin were somehow inferior and less than unman came to be used as a reason or justification for slavery (p. 5). The disposition of Triangular Trade between Europe, Africa and the Americas was racial in nature.
In fact the trade of African slaves was reinforced by a bigoted belief that viewed whites as a perfectly developed race and blacks as a lower non-perfect race of individuals.