Estaban enfermos y, en opinión del capitán del barco, representaban una amenaza para su margen de beneficio.
La pérdida de lo que entonces consideraba su mercancía podía compensarse cobrando el seguro de viajes.
Los responsables de la atrocidad, conocida como la Masacre de Zong, quedaron impunes, a pesar de los esfuerzos de los activistas del movimiento abolicionista británico para que fueran juzgados por asesinato.La ironía del nombre
Entre el siglo XVI y principios del siglo XIX, al menos 12 millones de africanos fueron capturados y llevados para ser vendidos como esclavos en las colonias del continente americano, aproximadamente un tercio en barcos británicos.
Zong, la olvidada masacre en que 132 esclavos fueron arrojados vivos por la borda
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Zong, la olvidada masacre en que 132 esclavos fueron arrojados vivos por la borda
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Zong, (renamed
Richard of Jamaica), one of 10 ships to have disembarked Africans in Black River from 1781-1791, docked after a long voyage from modern-day Ghana. Seized from the Dutch (as
Zorgue) and sold to a Liverpool syndicate led by William Gregson, the
Zong was captained by Luke Collingwood.
The overcrowded ship with 442 Africans onboard, including 244 already on board when it was seized, left Accra on August 18, 1781, making a stop in Sao Tomé before embarking on the Middle Passage journey on September 6, 1781.
Ten weeks later, it arrived in Tobago, after which it continued on its journey to Black River, but it veered off-course near Haiti, losing time. By then, complaints of water shortage, illness, and death among the crew and poor navigational and leadership decisions all created a level of confusion aboard. Towards the end of November, approximately 62 Africans had died.