The Middle Passage UNESCO Site of Memory Tybee Island, Georgia

The Middle Passage UNESCO Site of Memory Tybee Island, Georgia. Routes of Enslaved Peoples: Resistance, Liberty and Heritage. , The Middle Passage is a scar on the history of humanity. It is not a single race, religion or country's responsibility to bear; it belongs to the world. The enslavement of Africans was a global system that lasted more than 300 years. The Middle Passage was the ocean route traveled by over 12 million kidnapped Africans who were marched to the African, coast and transported to the Americas to begin their lives of enslavement. It is estimated that more than 2 million of the 12 million captive men, women, and children did not survive the 21 to 90 day voyage across the Atlantic. Each ship carried between 150 and 600 captives, and the average space allotted for each African was only 6 feet long, 16 inches wide, and 3 feet high. Daily rations, if available, were often only one liter of moldy water and rancid, bug infested food. Poor sanitary conditions, bad food, and water caused extreme illness and death. The many who did not survive the deplorable conditions and violent abuse were thrown overboard without ceremony. Their watery graves mark the Middle Passage routes along the Atlantic from the coast of Africa to the North American mainland. Tybee Island, Georgia, was one of 53 coastal ports in the United States to which enslaved Africans arrived. The importation of Africans to the United States was officially outlawed in 1808. , (captions) , Map showing the primary movement of enslaved Africans, raw materials, and manufactured goods -National Park Service , , “Stowage of the British slave ship brokers under the regulated Slave Trade Act of 1788” The Library of Congress