Zanzibar Slave Market

One of my favorite sites in Zanzibar, although also obviously one of the most somber, was the remains of the slave market.  Zanzibar has the sad distinction of being the last active slave market in the world, or at least the last major active slave market in the world.  I saw a statistic the other day that maybe 20% of the population of Mauritania could still be considered slaves today, so, unfortunately, there must be slave markets still operating.  Happily, even for a historian, there isn't much left of the slave market in Zanzibar.  The site of the old slave market is covered by the Anglican Church, so when you take the tour (which you certainly should) what you're mainly seeing are a couple holding cells underneath the church.  Unfortunately this picture of the holding cells doesn't do justice to David, the wonderful young Tanzanian who gave me the tour, although I suppose it does aesthetic justice to the concept of the slave trade.  The thought of dozens of slaves crammed into that narrow space, especially when you consider that it was often half-flooded, is sobering.  Visiting the slave market also really brings home the complex role that the English played in both actively promoting the slave trade and taking a leading role in ending it.

The chuch and the remains of the slave market are pretty easy to find, even in the winding streets of Stone Town.

I wish I had a better picture of David, a wonderful young man, but this picture does give a sense of the inhumane conditions of the holding cells.

The crucifix in the Anglican church, covered for Lent.

An appropriate homage to the role that Livingstone played in ending the slave trade.