"From the 15th to 19th century, human trafficking on a huge scale flowed between Europe," "Africa and America." "12 million men, women and children were sold as slaves on the coast of Africa, snatched from their land and shipped across the Atlantic by white slavers, to work in the New World." "this trade increased over 150 years and resisted many campaigns to abolish it." "Slavery was outlawed by France on 27 April 1848." "Slaves' recorded accounts, captains' logbooks and ship-owners' letters tell the story of slavery and give life to Yanka  Toriki's experiences, born free in a village in the Gulf of Guinea." "EBONY" "A village, Gulf of Guinea 1825" "Stop looking at Toriki." "I forbid you to look." "I'm not looking." "Yanka." "A year later, Judge Juston, French West Indies." "I can't tell you how many days we walked for because I lost sense of time." "Go on." "But it lasted for weeks during which time many other unfortunates like us came to join us." "We did not know what he wanted from us and we couldn't begin to imagine." "1825." "The slave trade, banned by France for 7 years, continued covertly between Africa and America." "Although France had abolished slavery in 1794," "Napoleon reinstated it." "Due to the authorities' laxity, slavers from Nantes, Bordeaux and West Indies continued their lucrative triangular trade." "Ships carried weapons and goods to Africa to exchange for captives, later sold in the French West Indies and Cuba." "the ships returned to France full of plantation produce:" "coffee, sugar and cocoa." "One winter morning in 1825, a brig from Nantes, the Bienfaisant, set sail for the Gulf of Guinea." "3 months later, it reached the south-west coast of Africa." ""My Dear Grandson," "Letter, the Bienfaisant" ""I was your age" ""when I made my 1st voyage." ""I threw myself into slave trading young" ""for the prosperity of our family." ""Captain Lavergne has agreed" ""to take you on as a boy seaman, Joseph." ""It's your turn to learn the trade" ""and, like all Monerois, climb the ranks one by one."" "Land." "Gulf of Guinea 16 April 1825" "On 16 April 1825, having reached the coast of Africa 98 days after setting sail from Nantes, the Bienfaisant dropped anchor at the mouth of a river." "Supplying human merchandise remained the work of local traffickers, capitalising on wars, famine and raids to stock up." "At times, they let white slavers deal with the slaves themselves." "Whether from Europe or America, they learned to comply with the long negotiation rituals." "After making us wait 12 days," "King Peppel finally decided to grant us an audience." "I decided to take our surgeon along with me." "A learning experience for him, as having never been here, I very much doubted he could imagine such talks, and I'd told him nothing." "But I did not allow Joseph to accompany us." "He's still too young." "Captain Lavergne!" "I am greatly pleased to see you return in such good health." "And I am most pleased to see, again, such a good and great monarch as His Majesty, who has performed glorious actions." "Do you expect something of me, Captain?" "I pray His Majesty gives orders so that I shall soon be charged and able to return to my country, where I shall make known the character of the great, mighty king I did see again." "What are your needs, Captain?" "I need 300 parakeets and mules, half of them prime." "I can only provide you with 160 to 200." "Give me permission to deal with the locals." "I'll think about it." "Days and nights passed." "With me were women and children from our village and distant villages I'd never heard of." "the men were apart in huts." "Some had fought with all their might, others had been too weak to resist." "Sit down." "It is a fine gun." "Much better than the previous ones." "there are 120 Dutch like this one, and 800 French similar to the last." "Do you think it could hit the pitcher?" "His Majesty could easily hit an even smaller object." "this is the 4th time I've anchored in these parts." "And each time the same feelings arise." "Here, it's waiting and death." "Death is everywhere, in the air we breathe, water we drink, and fruit we eat." "I've never come here without losing sailors." "the learners pay the heaviest price." "After 16 more days of waiting, one of King Peppel's officers paid us a visit today." "His Majesty is satisfied with the merchandise with which we have paid the coutume." "To the health of your King Peppel." "the slave trading begins." "I gave him what he wanted." "We will choose the captives and King Peppel allows us to deal with the locals." "Before the crossing, the crew fix the deck." "A wooden palisade with a door separates the command post." "High nets attached to the railing prevent falls." "Shipwrights have reduced the lower deck's height for a false deck on each side of a corridor." "It houses the cargo on 2 levels." "Ah, Joseph." "Here." "Your grandfather's recommendations." "Study them well." "they may prove very useful later in our journey." ""Captain, these are my recommendations." ""You already know them, but they are of such importance" ""to the success of our work" ""that I have no qualms repeating them." ""Secure yourself the best captives, preferably young" ""from 15 to 35 years maximum." ""Besides resisting better the fatigue of the crossing," ""they will sell advantageously in America." ""Try to procure between 1/4 and 1/3 prime slaves" ""or at least 1.6 m tall, strong, with no defects," ""all of their teeth, not bald, in fine health." ""Don't hesitate to lick the skin," ""the taste of the sweat" ""can reveal certain diseases." ""For the women, take the young," ""at reproductive age or soon capable of reproducing." ""But not greater in number than 1/3 of the men." ""As for the younger ones," ""there should be no more than 1/3 of the number of women."" "I had the selected captives branded with the initials LB, Le Bienfaisant, so King Peppel could not swap prime slaves with lesser values before embarking them." "the first thing I saw as we got to the coast was the sea, of course, but also the ship that was anchored there." "I'd never seen anything so big on the water." "But my astonishment turned to fear when I realised the expected cargo was us." "then to terror, which I tried to hide, when I was led on board." "I remember what we said to each other, that we were going beyond the great sea, and that the Whites might eat us." ""Take all the necessary measures" ""to prevent the spread of parasites and vermin" ""that the Negroes carry and that too often cause" ""great losses among our Negroes." ""To that effect," ""either shave them completely," ""or make them wash their heads and all hair in vinegar." ""Do not neglect to wash their eyes." ""the limes found in these countries are very good for that," ""as too often in the islands" ""Negroes who have lost part or all of their sight" ""are unsuitable for sale."" "Competition has raised the prices." "We are embarking only 286 captives instead of the 300 desired, or the 360 that the Bienfaisant could have held, leaving each of them less room." "But today's 286 cost us the same as 360 two years ago." "3,000 sheets Indian and Nantes fabric, 1,400 firearms and swords," "1,500 barrels of gunpowder and lead bags, 400 items of crockery," "120 cases of glassware, 10,000 litres of brandy and 5,000 iron ingots." "I see the fear in your eyes." "When we arrive, they'll give you work, you'll be housed, fed and treated if you're sick..." "The chains protect you." "On arrival, families will reunite." "Don't try to revolt or flee and all will be well." "You will soon thank King Peppel." "In the ship's belly, it's impossible to move and impossible to sleep." "We're separated from the men." "On the first night, I kept my eyes wide open." "I wanted them to open to the light of our village, to my mother's gaze." "We set sail on 1 September 1825, after 137 days anchored." "We're missing 14, but I didn't want to wait longer." "Joseph was worrying me but he seems better now, yet, it pays to be wary of erratic fevers which seem to disappear only to come back stronger." "2 sailors are afflicted." "Joseph." "Joseph." "Nabim." "Nabim." "Head." "Head." "Arm." "My arm." "The sun." "The sun." "Time." "The time." "5 o'clock." "5 o'clock." "Five." "I left without saying goodbye they caught me, they caught me" "Mr Joseph." "What's the time on your watch?" " Go on, off you go." " Everybody up." "You there, want the whip?" "Get up, get moving." "Come on, everyone down below now." "Go on, off you go." "Every one below." "Down you go." "Go on." "Go on, here." "Go on, faster." "Down, I said." "Go down." "You're just victim to a putrid fever that you catch in tropical climates." "A few days of rest and it will be gone." "The other sailors who were sick died." "I won't escape it." "Captain." "Promise to keep me aboard after I die and bury me on Christian land." "Don't the Negroes have a soul too?" "They probably have a soul since they are men, and men are creatures of God." " So, what we're doing is wrong." " No." "God created different men." "He created Negroes to serve Whites, who serve the Lord." "Right then, you need to rest, you must sleep." "Help me to die." "Don't do that." "Help me..." "How did she get this piece of fabric past us?" "All blamed for losing a Negress, each sailor got 20 lashes on the rear deck and were ordered to be extra vigilant." "Death is clearly less scary to cursed Negroes than a journey to an unknown future." "To avoid any revolt, we bring them on deck in small groups, never men and women together." "We were fed and washed on the deck." "We could stretch out our bodies and breathe, see each other in the light." "We could look at the sea." ""Here, I tremble and I am fearful" ""before Your approaching judgement and Your looming anger." ""Grant him eternal rest, Lord," ""and let perpetual light shine upon him."" "Go on, make them sing." "And dance." ""See to it that our Negroes sing and dance" ""as often as possible," ""at least twice a week." ""Music and dance are so vital to them that without it," ""they might enter a state of affliction," ""which is often fatal."" "A fine 3-masted... they want us to sing, let's sing." "they don't understand." "Toriki wants to hear Yanka's voice." "Yanka misses Toriki." "Moored at the pit dock" "Moored at the pit dock" "A 3-master loaded with wheat" "Man the mizzen starboard braces" "Square all yards" "We've a fair tailwind" "Good sailor, kind seaman" "It's me, Gamou, I'm here!" "It's me, Awa." "It's Fato!" "I'm here too!" "We worried about getting sick." "Our stomachs writhed in pain." "they emptied out." "We burned with fever, then shivered with cold." "Some of us died." "Some of the Whites too." "the dead disappeared." "Don't tell me you're performing an autopsy?" "Knowing the cause of death helps if more fall sick." "Dysentery." "You don't need to open up." "Let me show you." "Many doctors argue the inferiority of Negroes can be seen in the structure of this part of the brain, the corpus callosum, smaller in Negros." "Some Negroes are convinced that they will be eaten." "If they see a Negro cut up, it will confirm their fears." "Tidy all this away." "I cannot afford a Negro revolt out of fear of being eaten." "the hold has a hideous stench." "It's small size and the heat, in addition to our great number, made us sweat profusely." "Add to that the disgusting state of the latrines." "the stench was so bad that the air was unbreathable." ""The small space occupied by the captives" ""and the need to have them shackled" ""compounds a fatal fermentation that can be prevented" ""by taking the captives on deck for air and" ""washing them with sea water"." "She's definitely dead." ""Be sure to write reports on the captives" ""that die and see that they are thrown into the sea" ""at night to prevent the sad spectacle from feeding a" ""revolt among the Negroes." ""You must clean and rinse the place they have left" ""and scrub hard with vinegar, as all sorts of vermin" ""emerge from men's bodies and greatly multiply." ""And of all bodies," ""Negro bodies are the most inclined to" ""harbour this sort of corruption." ""Cleanliness is an enterprise" ""that must be tirelessly repeated" ""for the crew to survive."" "Land." "To port, to port." "The French West Indies 16 October 1825" "On 16 October 1825, the ship is in sight of the F. West Indies." "the brig's sailed well, beyond what we could have hoped for." "46 days from Africa's coast." "That's 18 less than my fastest journey to date." "It saved us the losses that a longer journey would no doubt have caused." "Out of the 286 original captives, we have only lost 16." "6 Negroes, 5 Negresses, 3 young males, 2 young females." "that represents a 6% loss of revenue." "While out of the 32 crew members, we lost 4 sailors and the boy seaman." " Captain." " Welcome aboard." "Be careful." "No more on board sales allowed." "Get them ashore fast." "With one exception." "Your ship owner requests a young female in France to use as a servant." "Very well." "In the last 3 months, the governor seized 2 ships before they discharged their Negroes." "It's not that the governor got the idea to enforce the prohibition or that he's fond of Negroes." "He's building roads, bridges and churches." "So he requisitions the seized Negroes and makes them work for him." "Luckily, I've found 3 colonists that I can trust and who are in great need of Negroes." "We'll pretend the colonists already own them and the sales will be made on their behalf." "Officially, you will only act as their representative." "I have all the necessary papers if there's an inspection." "Customs are accommodating, but there's a young French judge who I sailed here with." "He's everywhere and questions everyone, colonists and slaves alike." "It's better to be ready should he poke his nose in our business on sale day." "If any of you are blacksmiths, sculptors," "or potters, make yourselves known." "What are you scared of?" "Do I look badly dressed?" "You should be dressed like me." "Craftsmen, stand to one side." "Only married women come forward to join your family." "Those who have wives, join them." "I can tell he's lying." "You'll meet your masters, they're not like you." "If you look good, you'll be treated well." "But any word or gesture against a white man will be severely punished." "Toriki and I wanted the same master." "We wanted to appear as husband and wife." "But I didn't dare go to him." "And he didn't move either." "I sold 270 captives, 136 of which were divided into 18 lots of 3 to 6 members." "12 families of 3-4 members and 88 prime slaves sold individually." "For lots with multiple takers, preference was given to cash payment, whether it be in goods or money." "2 families without a taker were separated." "Negro youths were sold separately." "those quarrelled over were sold by auction and we obtained more than the return on many lots." "Look at these muscles." "Here is a mule that will work hard." "180." "We have 180." "200, Sir. 200." "230." "We have 230." "230. 300." "350." "Come on, don't let this prime go." "950." "Yes, Sir." "1,000. 1,100, who bids more?" "Anyone?" "1,100." "Sold to Mr Bonnefond." "Now we have an exceptional parakeet." "And we'll also start the bidding at 150." "180." "We're at 180." "220." "250." "280. 300." "We're at 300." "300. 330." "The breasts." "See the breasts." "A stomach untouched by pregnancy." "Hard, muscular buttocks." "350." "We have 350." "We have 400 there." "400." "No one else bidding?" "400, sold to Mr Dessart." "We've got another exceptional 3-piece now." "A great purchase, Uncle." "I must admit I'm jealous." "Plantation, 61 slaves, 20 horned animals." "Another plantation, 33 slaves of both sexes, 16 horned animals." "When we arrived at the plantation, what they call the master's property, a priest gave a speech to explain how lucky we were." "Thanks to the Whites who had brought us there, we were going to join God's community and our souls would be saved." "Gods, we had." "But he told us that there was only one God and that if we didn't live in God's love, we would burn in Hell until the end of time." ""I'll pour pure water on you," ""and you will be cleansed of all your idols," ""and all your corruption, I will purify you." ""I will give you a new heart." ""And install in you a new spirit." ""I will remove your heart of stone" ""and give you a heart of flesh." ""I will install my spirit in you so you will live by my laws," ""obey my commands" ""and remain faithful to them."" "Next." "Your name is Sachrist." "And then they gave us new names." "No one asked our names." "Your name is Eusebe." "they acted like we were nameless." "they simply told me:" ""Your name is Delie."" "Your name is Delie." "After that day, they only ever called me that." "Jean-Baptiste." "I found out later that Toriki's name was Saint-Jean." "Your master or mistress will teach you living habits." "If you obey, if you do your work properly, you will be treated well." "But any act of insubordination, any attempt to rebel and any attempt to flee will be severely punished according to the law." "Any slave who strikes his master or the wife of his master, or their children, raising bruises or blood, will be punished by death." "The Black Code" "And if you try to escape, you will be punished as per the law." "After his first attempt, a fugitive slave will be branded with a lily shape on the shoulder." "2nd try, his leg will be cut." "After a 3rd attempt, he will be punished by death." "The commander rings a bell at daybreak." "But if the day is short, you get up at night." "You then proceed to what is called mass." "A kind of prayer for their God." "then you leave for work." "We each have a plot." "You grow whatever you like." "Whatever you reap belongs to you." "You can eat it or sell it." "But you can only tend to your plot on Saturdays." "It's called "Saturday-garden"." "When you sell something, you keep the money." "It's yours." "But don't leave it in the hut." "Dishonest Negroes will steal it." "Some women buy back their body with their body." "Only sometimes, with the master, but not here because of his wife." "His nephew's like that." "He takes a new girl to bed." "Sometimes, if the girl knows how to do it, he falls in love with her and sets her free." "But not always, because the master's nephew sleeps with all the new ones, but never frees them." "You can buy your body, in other words, buy your freedom." "Most of the Negroes working in this land of hardship die at their work before saving enough." "It takes so long to save enough, that by then you are old and good for nothing." "And what do you do when free?" "You roam the streets without work, nowhere to eat or sleep." "You'll see the free when you go to town." "You'll see those poor Negroes, old rags." "And the few who have managed to earn money, did so by serving the Whites so well they were given bonuses." "But they are white in their minds." "I'm convinced they've been poisoned." "It's dying." "It has to be poison." "What kind of poison?" "I don't know." "But it's poison." "We lost an ox today." "With last week's, that makes 3 oxen and 2 mules." "Some of you poisoned them." "that is punished by death." "Anyone who knows the culprits must inform me or will be punished for collusion." "I hold you all responsible." "You will pay by working on Saturday and Sunday." "If you are unhappy, denounce the culprits and I'll lift the penalties." "In the meantime, return to your huts immediately." "We left without saying goodbye..." "If we are to end the poisoning, Governor, you must give the colonists free rein to do it as they see fit." "I understand your concerns, but I cannot allow colonists to impose severe penalties outside of judicial procedure." "Especially while the young French judge..." "Juston." "Adolphe Juston." "Especially when Judge Juston is on our island." "the Court has ruled on many convictions and has many more cases." "Our prisons are full." "I cannot and do not wish to do more." "Without due process, how many alleged poisoners will be executed without proof of guilt being clearly established." "Proof is on the desk." "Dr Lapierre was emphatic." "this liver was poisoned." "the herbs found in their hut could cause sickness, but could not kill a man or an ox." "But imagine the treachery these Negroes are capable of." "It's the best treated who poison." "You wonder if the free Negroes are running a conspiracy." "Mrs Delage was poisoned by her most devoted servant." "Mr Delaneau lost all his oxen." "Who poisoned them?" "the Negro he taught to read and write and let buy back his body." "Cecile Tournon was poisoned by his mulatto nanny." "Cecile was 19, Sir." "Yes, 19." "His future was promising." "Mr Dessart, I reiterate, the court is serving its purpose." "Granted, it takes time but there's no other way." "the court is useless." "You're one of those who want to copy the French justice system." "It won't work." "Mrs Lambert's Marie-Louise." "She appealed and was sent to France to be heard." "She was supported by the ranting of friends of Negroes." "In the end, she was only given a very light prison sentence." "Is that how we are to ensure the peace of our island?" "No." "We must terrorise Negroes with swift rulings, demonstrating utmost firmness." "And if these swift and ruthless rulings fall on the innocent, the price paid will be small compared to the gains." "Doctor Ruffier." "You're the young judge everyone's talking about?" "Yes, Adolphe Juston." "Have you time to talk?" "I must go and see a patient, but let's have a chat." "I am sceptical about this poisoning business." "the doctors are notoriously incompetent." "the signs Dr Lapierre attributes to poisoning to my mind point to a form of cholera that affects as many men as animals." "the colonists are so prejudiced that all they can imagine is a plot to destroy them." "Santo Domingo's independence makes them more and more fearful." "Plantations can't expand." "they need more slaves to produce more." "there are so many slaves that if they were to revolt, the island could be set ablaze." "So, the colonists can't sleep and their sleepless nights only increase their anxiety." "Right." "No need to introduce you, Judge." "You're so talked about, I knew I'd see you one day." "Much is said about you too, Mr Dessart." "My wife." " Welcome." " Madam." "People in France know nothing about the situation here." "You've just arrived." "But after a while, you will appreciate the need to keep the order here by maintaining slavery." "No workers want to come from France." "they can't cope with the wretched climate." "Only Negroes, accustomed to it, can work here." "But the race of men we command here are traitors." "they are veritable snakes." "An exaggeration?" "the Negroes have only one thing in mind, which has us trembling:" "destroying the Whites." "Pierre." "I seek a match for my daughter, in order to increase the race of honest people while purging the rogues." "that's also my mission, Mr Dessart." "Only by the most severe means, the vilest examples and new tortures to slay the villains, will we keep the peace for years to come." "But you have never prospered more." "the colonies will never be what they once were." "If the government wants to keep and protect them more than before, we'll regain our wealth." "It's not easy buying 10-20 Negroes a year to replace the dead." "they kill themselves with disconcerting ease." "Thank you." "This isn't the coffee we produce." "Our coffee failed this year." "It's our neighbour's." "And in truth, I think it's better than ours." "When the music beats, our daughter can't sleep." "Maybe you should go see her." "If the music can turn the heads of grown men," "God knows how it can turn the head of a girl of 13." "You see, I've often spied their gatherings." "You've no idea how the dancers' movements are the opposite of modesty." "Note the amount of mulattoes." "Nearly all natural children of married colonists." "These men would never shake a Negro's hand but they don't hesitate to take a Negress to satisfy their desires." "I found out where Toriki is by asking other slaves." "He did the same thing." "He visited me at night several times, leaving early in the morning to be back at his plantation," "Dessart's nephew's, by time to rise." "this lasted a few weeks." "But one day, after 2 slaves died over so-called poisoning," "Pierre Dessart forbade us to have visitors." "That's when we decided to run away, to leave." ""Runaways", they called us." "I treat you all like my children." "So, I expect you to respect me like a father." "A father won't let his children leave without his permission," "so I cannot allow any of you to run away." "You all know the penalties that runaways face." "The government has asked us to stop such mutilation." "Saint-Jean and Delie will not have their ears cut off." "But... justice demands that they be suitably punished." "One, two," "three, four, five," "six, seven," "eight, nine, ten..." "I had to return to work the next day." "But for 30 days, I spent my nights in the dungeon with my ankles in a yolk." "Before locking me in, the manager rubbed my wounds with a mixture of lemon and chili." "It was to prevent infection, but it was an added torture." "But at the time," "I would rather have died of gangrene than be subjected to that." "67, 68..." "As for Toriki, he spent 3 days on the post without food or water." "Then his master, Pierre Dessart's nephew, came to get him." "Toriki couldn't walk." "They had to put him on a wagon." "Pierre Dessart isn't the worst." "He's really tough." "He punishes his slaves cruelly when he thinks they've misbehaved." "But he gets the doctor when someone's sick." "He makes sure children are cared for when parents work." "He doesn't make pregnant women work." "There aren't many pregnant slaves." "In 1 year, there were only 2 births." "The women prefer to abort than give birth to a slave." "Pierre Dessart's nephew Bonnefond is the worst." "He's not hard, he's cruel." "He makes women work until their waters break." "And expects them to return to work the next day." "Toriki told me that he whips them a lot, even the children." "And he beats some slaves to death." "Now, I must go before the market finishes." "Leave that, you've lost a lot of time with this." "You know, some slaves have learnt to read." "They know the laws now." "Masters can beat their slaves, but they can't kill them." "Bonnefond deserves to be in prison, but he keeps on raging." "I have no police powers here." "I can investigate." "I promise to do that." "Stop." "Talk to anyone you want." "I don't care." "I've got nothing at all to hide." "No one has." "Yet the governor gets letters saying to expel me on the next ship." "Where do you want to start?" "Wherever you like." "No, I've always been fed and treated well." "Yes, I work, but I can rest whenever I need to." "You've never been struck?" "Never." "Have any other slaves been struck?" "No." "Do you know if slaves are punished with a whip or yoke?" "No." "Have you heard of them being cruelly punished just for answering their master?" "No, never." "What do you fear?" "Will you be hurt for talking to me?" "You're looking for evidence of maltreatment, punishment," "even torture." "You and your friends want us to talk." "Over there, in your country, you hope to lift the hearts of inhabitants of this far away land?" "You hope they'll mix their tears with the Negroes'?" "Tell me, will a slave be seated on a golden throne?" "Will that make him any less a slave?" "Will that make him any less another man's property?" "Isn't that what you should be fighting?" "Against the law that lets a man own another man." "I've already said too much." "I saw a master use an iron chest, lock up the sad victim of his despotism and place it close enough to the fire to cause acute pain." "One young man, in order to recognise them, cut off the ears of 6 slaves his father had given him." "I saw a Negress who stole a duck receive 50 lashes, be rubbed with spicy lemon juice, and be chained up outside for 2 weeks to atone for the horrendous crime she was guilty of." "I saw... but I'll stop there." "I'm tired of describing atrocities." "When you're in France, don't let your servant write anything unattended." "They use all kinds of tricks to send pamphlets here that pervert Negroes, telling them about equality and freedom." "They send pamphlets demanding the abolition of slavery." "Well, well, speak of the Devil." "It's a good thing we finally decided to expel him." "Have a good journey." "Thank you." "There's nothing to fear." "As soon as you're on French soil, you're free." "Free and a servant." "Don't be scared." "You're going to France, you're free." "Free!" "Can you look after her?" "Although your time has, shall we say, been abbreviated, did you finish your work?" "Oh, I don't think any extra time would have brought me anything new." "I've seen enough." "All the same, I thank your husband for opening his house and his heart to me." "He promised to join us within 3 years." "But I don't believe it." "As for me, I never want to come back here again." "I've been happy, but I can't stand the climate." "Aren't you leaving for your daughter?" "Thank God, she is well." "No, I don't mean the heat and rain," "I mean people and mentalities." "Some just think about money." "Money, money, money." "The conditions are good to increase wealth." "An awful hierarchy has been set up that dictates relationships between men." "Those with money despise colonists without it," "Whites hate Blacks, mulattoes envy Whites and despise Negroes." "Only Mr Bicette, who was wrongly judged, a mulatto, defended the Negroes." "And Negroes don't escape this feeling themselves." "Domestics despise the skilled who despise the Negroes in the fields." "They only have hatred contempt for each other." "Raw and refined sugar, coffee, cocoa, indigo, cotton, pepper, sugar-cane alcohol and mahogany planks." "The Bienfaisant's holds and stores are full of wares that, in addition to cash, served as payment for slaves." ""Less the Bienfaisant's running costs," ""weaponry, the crew's wages," ""trading goods, insurance, ship repairs," ""The profit from this slave trading excursion is 4 times higher" ""than the returns of any other investment."" "At my master's nephew's they found bodies of other animals." "Toriki's master, Bonnefond, accused them of poisoning along with 2 other slaves," "Eusebe and Solitude, who were expecting a child." "My god-mother knew he wanted to punish Toriki harshly for daring to speak to the judge who has just left the island." "the judges sentenced all 3 to death." "But they waited until Solitude had had her baby before taking her away." "I asked to see my master, Pierre Dessart." "I swore the evidence was false and Toriki innocent." "He refused to intervene." "I begged him later to buy back Solitude's baby." "He agreed and freed it, baptising it Agriculture." "Usually, baptised slaves, and Toriki was one, had to be buried in a cemetery." "But that was denied him." "I searched for a long time." "I never found him." "20 years after Toriki's hanging, 27 April 1848," "France outlawed slavery forever." "Solitude, solitude you hold us," "Life's solitude," "It's hard to leave a mother," "Hard to leave a father, 12 million were taken, extracted, uprooted," "12 million became slaves." "You don't have a name anymore" "And you speak a language that is not your own." "You, Black Man, you should live" "12 million years." "Subtitles:" "Eclair Media"