Why Black Man Dey Suffer

I know many of my family and friends are anxiously awaiting photos of my Christmas by the beach and I have a few past experiences to catch up on as well but I thought, after my fire festival post that spoke of celebrating African culture in all of its variations, I should follow with a part of our history that isn't quite as nice but should be remembered nonetheless.  During my holidays I visited this place - 

Welcome to Elmina Castle 

 Elmina Castle was erected by Portugal in 1482 as St. George of the Mine Castle in present-day Elmina city, Ghana. It is the oldest European building in existence below the Sahara.  Its purpose : slaves. 

(female slave dungeon) 

(hundreds could be held here at a time - the castle had sometimes up to 1000 slaves in it at one time)

 (perched above officers, traders, or basically any white man could look down into the women's dungeon yard and pick one for his pleasures)

(he looked down into this courtyard to choose)

(the selected went up these stairs)

(some of the original brick flooring)

I stood on that brick as many tourists did before me and many will after me but most importantly as so many Africans did knowing that they were going to be slaves.  That they were slaves.  

For those that misbehaved there was this room.  Next to it is a cell reserved for some of the officers that misbehaved as well.  A few differences - the officers' cell had windows and they were sent there for a day or two.  We entered that cell and the tour guide shut the door.  It was horrible but there was light.  This one, with the skull, has no windows and slaves were put there, well, until they died.  We also entered that cell and the tour guide shut the door.  When he opened it up again I quietly stepped out while he continued his explanation. To stand where so many died is hard. 

(the door of no return)

To stand where so many were made to crouch down and slip through what is barely a hole in the massive stone wall is indescribable.  Writing this now I still feel the blanket of sadness that covered me that day.  It is estimated that 6.3 million people were sold from West Africa to North America and South America between 1701 and 1810.  Some say that up to 5 000 people were sold a year from Ghana alone. This does not include the many men, women and children who died on route to the castle or in the castle itself.  

 (where the top officer lived)

(stairs up to an airy rooftop)

(in the distance you can see another castle built by the Dutch in 1637 to protect St. George's castle)

As we walked the rooftop looking down at Ghanians playing football (soccer) by the ocean we asked ourselves what the men who lived here talked about when they walked the same steps.  Could they ignore who was underneath them?  Were they able to truly believe that this was the way? 

(built by the Dutch in 1637)

 Psalm: 132

The Eternal Dwelling of God in Zion

A Song of Ascents.

132 Lord, remember David
And all his afflictions;
² How he swore to the Lord,
And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:
³ “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house,
Or go up to the comfort of my bed;
⁴ I will not give sleep to my eyes
Or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵ Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

⁶ Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
We found it in the fields of the woods.^[a]
7 Let us go into His tabernacle;
Let us worship at His footstool.
⁸ Arise, O Lord, to Your resting place,
You and the ark of Your strength.
⁹ Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness,
And let Your saints shout for joy.

¹⁰ For Your servant David’s sake,
Do not turn away the face of Your Anointed.

¹¹ The Lord has sworn in truth to David;
He will not turn from it:
“I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body.
¹² If your sons will keep My covenant
And My testimony which I shall teach them,
Their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.”

¹³ For the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:
¹⁴ “This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
¹⁵ I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
¹⁶ I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
¹⁷ There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
¹⁸ His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”

 (church built by the Portuguese in the centre courtyard of the castle) 

 None of my words would ever come close to describing this experience and although many might think that this is not much fun on a christmas holiday I would never change or wish I hadn't gone.