The Untold Truth: How Islamic Slave Traders Fueled the Atlantic Slave Trade
As an Iranian-American, ex-Muslim, and devout Christian, I’ve spent years reflecting on the intersection of faith, history, and politics. One of the most disturbing historical realities I’ve come to understand is the deep connection between Islam and the slave trade that ravaged Africa and brought unimaginable suffering to millions of people. Today, the loudest voices on the subject of slavery often focus on the horrors of the Atlantic slave trade and demand reparations from Western nations, particularly Christian ones. However, a critical question remains overlooked: what about the Muslim role in slavery? Why aren’t Islamic nations held accountable for their foundational role in trafficking human beings?
In this article, I will argue that Islamic empires, not Christian ones, were the original architects of the African slave trade. Furthermore, it is Islamic nations—not the West—that should be paying reparations to both Black Africans and White Europeans who were victims of Islamic slavery across centuries.
The Role of Islam in the African Slave Trade
It’s a hard truth for many to accept, but slavery would not have existed in America, at least not in the way it did, without the crucial involvement of Muslim slave traders. Islamic empires, especially in North and West Africa, were major players in the enslavement and selling of African people long before European colonial powers arrived on the scene. Muslim merchants and rulers, under the banner of the Arab-Islamic empire, initiated the trans-Saharan slave trade as early as the 7th century. They raided African villages, capturing and trafficking human beings across the Islamic world—from the Arabian Peninsula to India and beyond.
Historian John Alembillah Azumah, in his groundbreaking book The Legacy of Arab-Islam in Africa, sheds light on the fact that nearly 14 million Africans were enslaved and sold into Muslim-controlled regions during the centuries of Islamic expansion. This number is on par with the 12-15 million Africans sold into the Atlantic slave trade by Europeans. Azumah also points out that the brutal conditions many slaves endured under Muslim rulers often resulted in death, with many not even surviving the journey to the slave markets .
Muslim traders were also the intermediaries between African chieftains and European slave buyers. These traders knew the terrain, the markets, and the local populations, and they made it possible for the large-scale transport of slaves to the Americas. If not for these Muslim traders, who were often brutal in their conquests and slave raids, European colonialists would not have had the logistical capability to obtain so many slaves from Africa. In short, it was the Islamic slave traders who made it all possible.
Islamic Slavery Was Global and Multifaceted
When people discuss slavery, they often think only of Africans being sold into America. However, Islamic slavery was a global phenomenon. While African men, women, and children were being sold into Muslim households and harems across the Arab world, Muslims were also enslaving Europeans. This aspect of Islamic slavery is less well-known but equally devastating.
Muslim Barbary pirates, operating out of North Africa, terrorized the Mediterranean for centuries. They raided European coastal towns, capturing White Christians and selling them into slavery. Historian Robert C. Davis, in his book Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters, estimates that as many as 1.25 million Europeans were enslaved by Muslim pirates between the 16th and 18th centuries . The men were often worked to death in quarries or galleys, while the women were forced into sexual servitude.
The sheer scope of Islamic slavery, which affected both Black Africans and White Europeans, is staggering. Yet, the demand for reparations seems exclusively focused on Western nations and Christian societies. This focus is not only misleading but also unjust. It erases the historical reality of Islamic slavery and lets Muslim-majority nations off the hook for their role in this dark chapter of human history.
Who Should Pay Reparations?
The idea of reparations has gained momentum in the United States and Europe, with activists calling for compensation for the descendants of African slaves. However, if reparations are to be truly fair and based on historical accountability, we need to broaden the conversation. Islamic nations, particularly those in the Middle East and North Africa, owe a debt not only to Black Africans but also to White Europeans.
Muslim empires and caliphates grew wealthy on the backs of slaves. From the Umayyads to the Ottomans, Islamic rulers used forced labor to build their palaces, fuel their economies, and maintain their military conquests. If the West is expected to pay for its involvement in slavery, then the Islamic world should be equally held to account.
We cannot forget the millions of Black Africans who were captured and sold by Muslim traders, nor can we ignore the suffering of Europeans who were also victims of Islamic slavery. Reparations should not be an exclusively Western issue; they should be a global one, with Muslim-majority nations contributing to a fund that recognizes their role in centuries of human trafficking.
A Call for Accountability
As an ex-Muslim and Christian, I believe in the power of truth and accountability. It is time to acknowledge that slavery was not solely a Western, Christian sin. Islam played a foundational role in the global slave trade, and its legacy continues to affect millions around the world. If we are serious about addressing historical injustices, then we must hold Islamic nations responsible for their role in enslaving both Black Africans and White Europeans.
Reparations, if they are to be fair and just, should come from the nations that profited most from the enslavement of human beings—Muslim nations included.
In the end, history should not be selectively rewritten to place blame on one group while absolving another. We need a comprehensive and honest examination of the past, one that holds everyone accountable for their actions, whether they were Christian or Muslim. Only then can we begin to heal the wounds of slavery and move forward as a united human family.
Sources:
- Azumah, John Alembillah. The Legacy of Arab-Islam in Africa. Oneworld Publications, 2001.
- Davis, Robert C. Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters: White Slavery in the Mediterranean, the Barbary Coast, and Italy, 1500–1800. Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.
- Lovejoy, Paul E. Transformations in Slavery: A History of Slavery in Africa. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
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