I was struck by the assumption among many of the comments MCJ posted that slavery as an institution was something that first appeared 400 years ago when the Portugese and Spanish showed up on the west coast of Africa. But the Arabs had been at it much longer than that, to say nothing of intra-continental slavery.

I might also add that, according to one of my parish priest's homilies, as soon as the Europeans started in on the slave trade, the Pope (one of the Leo's, I think) issued a bull telling them to knock it off. Ignored, of course.
Robbo | Homepage | 11.14.09 - 11:40 am | #