Answer:
Olaudah Equiano, also known as Gustavus Vassa, was a notable African writer, activist, and slave who played an essential part in the transatlantic slave trade.
Equiano was born in late 1740s Nigeria and was abducted and sold into slavery at the age of 11. He was taken across the Atlantic Ocean to numerous locations such as Barbados, Virginia, and Georgia. He was eventually able to buy his freedom and went on to become an abolitionist, writing and speaking out against slavery.
While Equiano was not actively involved in the transportation of slaves as a slave trader or captain of a slave ship, he did work as a seafarer and sailor, which provided him with insight into the hardships endured by enslaved Africans throughout the transatlantic journey.
"The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano," his renowned autobiography, vividly portrays his experiences as a slave onboard a slave ship and the cruel treatment of enslaved Africans. Equiano's depiction of the horrors of the Middle Passage aided in raising awareness about the severity of the slave trade and the horrible conditions suffered by enslaved Africans on their passage from Africa to the New World.
Equiano also became a prominent figure in the abolitionist movement, advocating for the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade based on his personal experiences. His writings and actions contributed to raising awareness about the atrocities of slavery and ultimately led to its abolition throughout the British Empire.
Sources
- Equiano, Olaudah. The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. Dover Publications, 2005.
- Carretta, Vincent. Equiano, the African: Biography of a Self-Made Man. University of Georgia Press, 2005.
- Kolchin, Peter. American Slavery: 1619-1877. Hill and Wang, 1993.
- Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty!: An American History. W. W. Norton & Company, 2019.
- Rediker, Marcus. The Slave Ship: A Human History. Viking Press, 2007.
- Rodriguez, Junius P. The Historical Encyclopedia of World Slavery. ABC-CLIO, 1997.
- Blackburn, Robin. The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Modern, 1492-1800. Verso, 1997.
- Gates, Henry Louis Jr. The African American National Biography. Oxford University Press, 2013.
- Horton, James Oliver and Lois E. Horton. Slavery and the Making of America. Oxford University Press, 2005.
- Northrup, David. Africa's Discovery of Europe, 1450-1850. Oxford University Press, 2002.