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Document E Excerpt from The Life of Olaudah Equiano written 1789 Olaudah Equiano was kidnapped at 11 and sold into slavery. Here is part of his story: During periods of good weather, the slaves would be brought up on deck in the morning. At this time the men would be shackled together with iron chains, while the women and children would be allowed to roam about on deck. At about nine o’ clock in the morning they were given their first meal of the day. Interestingly, slaves from different sections along the West African coast would often be fed different meals. Those from the Northern part of the Guinea Coast would be fed boiled rice, millet, or cornmeal. Slaves from the Bight of Biafra had stewed yams, and those from still farther south in the Congo River region would be fed starchy manioc, cassava flour, or banana-like fruits. Sometimes a few lumps of raw meat would be thrown in with their food to keep them healthy. It was also at this time in the morning that the slaves were given their daily ration of a half-pint of water in a small pan, called a pannikin. In the late afternoon came the slaves’ second and only other meal of the day. Sometimes it was the same as their first, but most captains were not that humane. The afternoon meal usually consisted only of horse beans, very large beans which are used to feed horses. They were the cheapest form of food available. The beans were boiled until they were pulpy and then covered with a mixture of palm oil, flour, and water. To cover up the horrible taste, large amounts of red pepper, called “slabber sauce”, were added.

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Denied Basic Rights

Unsanitary

Denied Basic Rights

Denied Basic Rights

Humiliating, Denied Basic Rights