The Castles
Tag: slavery
Toward Justice
It’s hard to talk about touring the slave castles along Ghana’s coast without resorting to clichés. The unspeakable horror of these places is palpable as you walk through the dark dungeons. It’s a sobering and humbling experience for a white American whose privilege was built on the backs of these men and women. In 2009, Barack and Michelle Obama Read More …
The Beginning
Through research I was unable to prepare for what I was intended to encounter at the Cape Coast Castle, and it did not properly prepare me for the emotions and thoughts that were about to overwhelm my mind and body. Throughout my lifetime I have studied and been educated on the slave trade and hardships Read More …
Horrific History
We learn about history in school, but we don’t truly understand the past until we experience something that gives us a glimpse of what happened in the years before us. We are all very familiar with the transatlantic slave trade and how it continued for hundreds of years. When learning about these unfortunate events, everyone Read More …
Visiting the Slave Castles
When I was little my parents rented Roots, a mini-series from the 1970’s about American slavery. At first I did not understand why we were about to watch a show that was going to take up an entire week of my time, but I quickly became engrossed in the series. This led to years of Read More …
I Never Want to be Famous, and Other Ghana Stories
Having completed my first week (and a few days), I have so much to reflect on. If you look at the blog posts of my group members you can see how much activity and blog-worthy events have happened in this short amount of time. We have been constantly on the go and only today’s national Read More …
Looking Slavery in the Eye
It has taken me a while to write about the castles we toured while in Cape Coast. I needed time to reflect on the trip. We toured two castles; Elmina and Cape Castle. Both held hundreds of thousands of slaves before being shipped off to the Caribbean or America. The castles are where the slaves Read More …
Visit to Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle
Hello Readers, Since I have been abroad in Ghana for a couple weeks a lot has happened. I have spoken Twi with the local Ghanaians, tried real Ghanaian food, and ridden a Tro Tro for the first time. But the most impactful thing that has happened since I have been here was when we all went Read More …
Understanding Difference
Although Elmina and Cape Coast are beautiful towns, they are plagued by a tragic history. On Saturday, we learned some of that history while touring the castles there. The Elmina and Cape Coast castles were two of the largest operating slave castles in West Africa, with the majority of slaves held there being sent to Read More …
Cape Coast Weekend: Better Late Than Never, Right?
After living in Ghana for six weeks I have really adapted to some parts of the lifestyle. My blog posts for example are being posted on Ghana time. Some might call it procrastinating, I guess I just like to look at the glass half full. Our weekend in Cape Coast was one of my favorite Read More …