(I wrote this like a week ago but I was waiting until I had Internet access on my laptop so that I could accompany the post with pix. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to get online with my laptop since then so here's the post... pix to follow. Sorry folks, I know I am a lame blogger, but you still love me, don't you?)
On Saturday we journeyed to Cape Coast, this is the place that the slaves were held before they were taken away. I knew it would be tough to see, but I had to see it before I left Ghana. The tour and the stories were sombering to say the least. We were shown the "male slave dungeon" where 1000 slaves were held at one time. The place was split into 5 corridors, each which held 250 men at a time. We were taken into one of the corriders, where there was just one small window for light and ventilation. The guide showed us a mark on the wall measuring nearly three feet high. This was the level at which the mens' excrement, vomit and urine filled the chamber. They were forced to live in this condition, in their own filth for 3 months at a time. The guide closed the door and turned the lightbulb out so that we might see, in a very small way, how they must have felt. It was terrifying and unimaginable that any human being was forced to endure such inhumane treatment. The man explained to us that the area we were in, used to be underground, and at the time it was being used, a church stood on top. While people were up on the surface praising God, the men below were being tortured beyond measure. The guide put it best when he described it as heaven and hell on earth.
We were also shown a punishment cell for women who refused to submit sexually to their captors. Those who were raped and became pregnant were at the mercy of the men who raped them as he decided whether or not to give the woman a "pass" from slavery and allow her to stay in Ghana. If this was not the case, the woman was brought immediately back to the cell after giving birth. And of course, she did not get to keep the child. Once on the ship, any woman discovered to be pregnant was thrown overboard.
We were also shown a condemned cell where men were taken to die (some who were ill, some who voluntarily starved themselves...). In this cell we actually saw marks on the floor from where the men scraped their chains and shackles into the ground. Once a man passed, his body was thrown into the sea.
Finally, we were taken out the "door of no return." This is the last point at which the slaves passed through before they were boarded onto the ships. Recently, the other side of the door was named "the door of return" as a symbolic gesture to those who have returned home.
At the end of the tour we were shown a plaque dedicated by the local chiefs. The reason it was given by them is because certain chiefs and village leaders participated in the slave trade. The plaque is a promise to never let such a thing happen again.
Please take a moment of silence to reflect on this grave period of history. & Never let inhumanity go on around you, no matter how big or small.
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