ISP Blog Post #3

  The main problem that is displayed in The Book Of Negroes is slavery. This problem leads to discrimination and racism for the entire black population. The white people treated Negroes very unfairly a long time ago. Amanita has gone through many struggles since she was captured in Bayo, Africa and forced into slavery.

Times were tough ever since Amanita was captured. As soon as a Negro was taken they were stripped of their clothes, shoes, and possessions. Following instructions and walking the pace that the men told them too was a Negroes way to avoid getting beaten. Amanita and others was forced to walk all day for several months to get to a large ship crossing to a new land. The ship was a very cruel place for the Negroes as the waters were dark; they were chained below deck, and sat in their own feces. Food was scarce and bathes where not usually given. A lot of Negroes didn't make it across the ‘big river’ and the uprising by the Negroes made the white men very angry which lead to consequences. The white men saw the Negroes as property that they had to deliver to make a profit. The black population was looked at with only dollar signs hanging over their heads.

Amanita was sold to a planation that harvests indigo the owner; Appleby abused her for seeing a different man because he claimed that he owned Amanita. Appleby publicly humiliated her in front of the other slaves stripped Amanita of her clothes, burned them, and cut all her hair off. Amanita saw herself as having lost her beauty and womanhood (179). Slaves were treated cruel and unfair all because white people thought that the colour of your skin measured how valuable you are.

Amanita's life brightened up a little after she was sold to Solomon Lindo. Lindo and his wife liked to called their two slaves as servants because they thought it to be more polite. Amanita and Dolly were well fed, clothed, and had a good back house for themselves. Amanita was treated better at the Lindo household but she was still owned and needed to work for them because she was no equal to white people.

White people thought that this was a normal way to live treating the black population like they had no freedom and equality rights did not exist. Slavery is inhumane and should have never been allowed. A white man did not own Amanita when the Brits control of America began to fall but still her and the other Negroes were the first to be left with no work, food, money, or clothes. Even as a free Negro with no owner, life was tough because Amanita describes that she will never truly be free unless she is at home in Africa.