Visiting the forts along Cape Coast was one of the more powerful and haunting experiences of my life. There’s only so much you can learn about the transatlantic slave trade through reading books and watching documentaries. Seeing the forts in person and hearing about the experiences of the people who were kept there on site was something I’ll never forget. Sadly it’s sometimes all too easy to try to remove yourself from a painful part of human history just because you weren’t alive when it happened. Immediately after crossing the threshold of the fort, I realized it would be a disservice to humanity not to look such an ugly part of our history in the eye.

One of the moments that stuck out the most to me was when the guide said: “the conditions the slaves were kept in is impossible for us to comprehend.” For some reason, people had tried recently to recreate and simulate those conditions, but the concept of an endpoint to the captivity was a luxury that none of the human beings who were actually held prisoner at the forts were afforded. Hearing about the vile conditions the prisoners were kept in as well as the cruelty of the people manning the fort is an emotional gut-punch that I firmly believe nobody could ever really prepare themselves for. Stepping into the dungeons and still being able to smell the filth that human beings were forced to live in is a moment that I feel is impossible to describe with words alone. The very ground we were standing on still contained traces of human flesh, blood, urine, vomit, and feces. I truly believe there is no way to properly understand the horrors that other human beings were forced to endure than to see the forts with your own eyes and hear about the experiences from someone who has dedicated his life to ensuring that these atrocities are never forgotten.

Another thing that stood out to me was how impossibly vibrant and positive the communities surrounding the fort were. It was difficult for me to comprehend how such kind-hearted and open-minded people were able to thrive in the shadow of such a despicable monument to one of humanity’s darkest chapters. While we were there, the people of Elmina were celebrating the Bakatue Festival in honor of the town’s birthday. It was startling to see such beautiful colors and cheerful music being enjoyed in close proximity to such an awful structure, but it gave me hope for the future as I saw it. These people who were so personally affected by such an awful period of human history were able to move forward despite the hardships they and their ancestors had gone through. I left Cape Coast knowing that as long as we promise not to forget the atrocities that were committed in this place and consciously work to prevent them from ever happening again, that love and humanity would have room to flourish and grow unchecked as time moves forward.