Here are some pics from Africa.

Here are some pictures of one of the slave forts (Cape Coast Castle) in Ghana Africa where many of the slaves headed for America were held.((Temperature that day in the slave fort was 110 degrees but felt a lot hotter) The British, Dutch and Portuguese used canons to shoot at ships from other countries that tried to take over the slave trade business. The group standing around the "Door Of No Return" which is the door slaves went through,never to return home again.There are pictures of Federal minister of water (lady) in Abuja Nigeria and me with the Federal minister and her staff dispalying a portable water treatment plant. My partner and me with hat on, in Lagos Nigeria standing next to a water treatment plant. Pictures of tribes in South Africa and statue of Nelson Mandela in Johannesburg South Africa in Mandela square, which is a hugh shopping mall. I hope you can read the writing on the wall. It was written many many years ago.

I remember several of these pictures from your BP page, I was always fascinated by them. Wondered what one thinks when walking through the places our ancestors suffered so much.... 

I like the details and colors of the tribal clothing and still marvel at how much South Africa has changed in our lifetime... who would have ever believed Mandela would have been free, less known become president and be immortalized with a statue.... 

I would love to visit Africa one day... I love these pictures.

I remember several of these pictures from your BP page, I was always fascinated by them. Wondered what one thinks when walking through the places our ancestors suffered so much.... 
I like the details and colors of the tribal clothing and still marvel at how much South Africa has changed in our lifetime... who would have ever believed Mandela would have been free, less known become president and be immortalized with a statue.... 
I would love to visit Africa one day... I love these pictures.

-matrixone05

It's a life changing trip to visit those places. Cape Coast Castle is the slave fort that Prez Obama and his family visited. There are many of them, but there is another one that is very popular called Elmina Castle where they still make the smaller boats that carried some of the slaves out to the slave ships. I think it would be nice to take those who wanted to go there to see and experience that. You won't be the same after going there.

Years ago, they restored the Amistad and it is docked in Nova Scotia. My nephew was commissioned by the League of Women Voters to photograph it... he said he was deeply effected by that as well....

I will definitely add it to my wish list....

btw, what is written on that marble stone? I can't quite make it all out.

Hmmm... I love the pics.  My brother in law is from Africa but I've never been.  It is on my wish list as well.

btw, what is written on that marble stone? I can't quite make it all out.

-matrixone05

It says: 

In Everlasting Memory Of Our Ancestors
May Those Who Died Rest In Peace
May Those Who Return Find Their Roots
May Humanity Never Again Perpetuate
Such Injustice Against Humanity
We The Living Vow To Uphold This

Those are powerful words.  Why is it written in English is my question.  Maybe it's for those of us who were sent off to the Americas.  I think it should be written in every language in the world.

The one thing that still bothers me to this day is the part the then Christian Church played in Slavery. There are many bible verses of scripture on walls throughout the slave forts/castles wrtten in portuguese and dutch. The displaying and auctioning of the slaves was held inside the small christian church of the slave forts. Just as the Roman Catholics have a person you confess to hidden behind a wall, so did those buying slaves. The buyer would go behind a wall inside the church, with 2 peep holes and bid on the slaves they wanted. The europeans built many angelican christian churches around the slave forts, many of which still stand today. I wondered if they auctioned off slaves first then went to church to pray and worship their god or did they go to church first to pray and worship their god and then do the auctioning. Really makes you wonder how a person comes to accept a certain religion, but that's another subject.

The one thing that still bothers me to this day is the part the then Christian Church played in Slavery. There are many bible verses of scripture on walls throughout the slave forts/castles wrtten in portuguese and dutch. The displaying and auctioning of the slaves was held inside the small christian church of the slave forts. Just as the Roman Catholics have a person you confess to hidden behind a wall, so did those buying slaves. The buyer would go behind a wall inside the church, with 2 peep holes and bid on the slaves they wanted. The europeans built many angelican christian churches around the slave forts, many of which still stand today. I wondered if they auctioned off slaves first then went to church to pray and worship their god or did they go to church first to pray and worship their god and then do the auctioning. Really makes you wonder how a person comes to accept a certain religion, but that's another subject.

-pt109rick

Quite frankly pt109rick, it doesn't surprise me at all.  Although I am a Christian, religion has been used throughout the world to demean, belittle, enslave, and justify cruelty to other humans.  The message of love is not always what's embraced in religion.  It is usually the message of legalism and judgment.  According to the new testament (which in some parts of the world isn't acknowledged), we've been given a higher law to practice and that is of love.  Unfortunately most people didn't get that memo.