Rethinking African Complaints About Historical Slavery

Many Africans highlight the transatlantic and Arab slave trades as unique injustices. Yet slavery was once a widespread practice. West African rulers also traded in human captives and could have bought European slaves if they chose to. Our ancestors were neither defenseless nor uniquely targeted. African states raised armies and protected their own. Superior weapons appeared only much later. In Arab lands, black elites held power and status. Major Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa groups never endured mass enslavement by Arabs. Today’s persistent focus on past slavery ignores the global scale of the practice. Europeans, Arabs, Asians and Africans all participated. If nations like India or China do not dwell on their own histories, why should we? Reflecting on these truths can help us move beyond grievance and toward collective progress.

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