Africa's diaspora: a 'positive' of slavery?

Question

The transatlantic slave trade lies at the heart of why millions of people of African heritage live around the world.

Is the presence of a global African diaspora one of the good things to have come out of slavery? Is the diaspora a source of strength for Africans or weakness?

Should people of African heritage play an active role in the continent's development?

Do you have any connections with the African diaspora? Have you tried to trace your roots back to Africa?

Answer 1

Positive for whom?
The African diaspora was only of very short term benefit to the rest of the world that has had to suffer the consequences for many generations.
Of great benefit to the descendants of the dispersed Negroes who owe a debt to the slave traders, without whom the great majority would either be in relatively primitive societies or never have been born.

Answer 2

We can't discuss slavery without looking critically at the lives of slaves and their descendants.
(unconsciously, some people think all blacks are descendants of slaves)

OUTSIDE AFRICA:
In most of Europe and America - All blacks are considered 2nd class citizens
In rest - they are made to view Africans through western lens.

IN AFRICA:
They were dumped in Freetown. (Hmm, I'm seeing a link here, dump them in Freetown, pick up ivory & other goods on the return leg, lucrative)

Others traced their origin back to their various towns and were absorbed on return. A lot of them kept their foreign surnames. But they are not looked down upon.


@ Topic

Metaphorically, Slavery turned Africans into subhumans because Africans are offsprings of a raped woman.
Africa is a very unstable place and from the western point of view, nothing good comes from there. AIDS from Africa, aids to Africa.
Africa is associated with poverty and instability.


Here is the chain of problems.

Slaves were usually prisoners of war, criminals or debtors who paid back their loans with sweat or death depending on the kind of crime committed. In some cases they were just people who disobeyed the Kings orders. Slavery grew when a market was created by the west who saw slavery as a cheap means to produce food for their countries so they can sit down and use their brains in inventing things. Think of things invented after the 16th Century. (planes, submachine guns, battle ships, war tanks, e.t,c)

Slavery brought colonization (e.g British attempt to militarily stop slavery caused them to colonize a port in Lagos, Nigeria. The whole country was later colonized from that little stronghold)

Colonization caused an arrested development in Africa (existing political systems were truncated and restarted awkwardly)

This resulted in the creation on unstable states

Instability caused wars, and wars caused instabilities, and the vicious cycle was set in motion

And this is the foundation of the current mess called Africa.


This is the impact of slavery on the world
Africans will not be looked down on if only Africa becomes great and powerful.

Answer 3

Is a shame to phrase the whole episode Positive? I called it ignorance and lost of identity. You have to be in my shoes to distinguish that. If you teach me to take Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus as my history and lie through your white teeth that Kwame Nkrumah and Nelson Mandela with the same colour as me are infectious species to this planet then I don't think Africa Diaspora a positive of slavery rather an epidemic that will divide Africans through generations.

MOORISH NUBIAN, Cape Coast

Answer 4

Same with the Asian diaspora, the European diaspora - ie present day America. Is it a positive? Don't know for sure - but it was inevitable.