Black Lives History Timeline: 1803 - Igbo Landing Mass Suicide

1803: Igbo Landing Mass Suicide

In 1794, the first congress of the new United States enacted a law limiting the slave trade, and making it illegal to trade slaves with another country. It was the first official step the country made to outlaw slave trade, though as we saw, it continued for more than 60 years after, and really only fully ended because of the Civil War. In 1803, a slave ship approached the Igbo people and captured many, and convinced others to come with them claiming that they would find a better life in America. By the time they realized they were to be sold as slaves, the ship was in the middle of the ocean, and it was too late to escape. The ship approached Georgia and 75 of the surviving slaves were sold to farmers there. As they were being transported to the coast, the slaves managed to get control of the smaller ship, drowning their captors. Rather than submit to slavery, their leader led them into the water, sacrificing themselves rather than live as chattel. Not all died, though. Many of them were "rescued" by headhunters, who gave them to the slave owners who had bought them. The full total of those who died is unknown still. Many of the descendants of those who survived still live in the area today.

Sources:

• Wikipedia: Igbo Landing
• Wikipedia: Slave Trade Act of 1794
• Profiles in Africana Religion – Part 13: Igbo Landing
• The story of Igbo who committed mass suicide and drowned themselves together with their captors in 1803
• The Legacy of Igbo Landing
• Igbo Landing in Memory
• The tragic yet resilient story of Igbo slaves who committed mass suicide off U.S. coast in 1803
• 6 Facts to Know About Ibo Landing
• How 75 Nigerians who revolted against slavery chose to drown in the U.S
• Igbo Landing Mass Suicide
• Videos:
• Igbo Landing: The African American Folklore
• The Legend of Igbo Landing
• Auntie Zya: The Ibo Landing Story
• The Amazing Ibo Landing Story

Not only was this after this sort of trade of humans illegal (not that it ever should have been), but slavers made sure to keep this out of historical record. And because the story was quashed by the Slavers who were involved, the only surviving story was handed down orally by enslaved people, it was considered a myth, rather than a fact. We need to stop doing this. The story was told for a reason, and thank goodness it survived to today. We need to know these things, accept them as fact, and stop treating them like they're nothing but lies.