The Slave Trade

The slave trade was a brutal system in which millions of people from Africa were forcibly taken from their homeland and sold into slavery, primarily to work in the Americas and Europe. It involved kidnapping or coercion, transportation across the Atlantic often in harsh conditions, and inhumane treatment once they arrived. The trade was driven by European powers seeking cheap labor for plantations and economic growth. It lasted for several centuries, causing immense suffering and long-lasting social and racial consequences that continue to affect societies today.