Personal account of being enslaved by Ottobah Cugoano ‘Thoughts and sentiments on the evil and
Personal account of being enslaved by Ottobah Cugoano ‘Thoughts and sentiments on the evil and wicked traffic of the slavery and of the commerce of the human species’ (1787):“Many of my miserable countrymen chained two and two, some hand-cuffed, and some with their hands tied behind … I was soon conducted to a prison, for three days, where I heard the groans and cries of many … When a vessel arrived to conduct us away to the ship, it was a most horrible scene; there was nothing to be heard but the rattling of chains, smacking of whips, and the groans and cries of our fellow-men. Some would not stir from the ground, when they were lashed and beat in the most horrible manner … When we were put into the ship, we saw several black merchants coming on board, but we were all drove into our holes and not suffered to speak to any of them. In this situation we continued several days in sight of our native land”He arrived in the Caribbean after this arduous journey and was set to work in Grenada until he was purchased by and Englishman, taken to England in 1772, and later obtained his freedom. -- source link
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