The Islamic Republic of Iran often criticizes Western nations, especially the United States, for their historical participation in the transatlantic slave trade. Yet, such condemnation rings hollow when one examines Iran’s own dark history of slavery, particularly under the Safavid and Qajar dynasties. While American slavery has been rightly condemned and addressed through abolition and civil rights movements, the reality of slavery in Iran, especially the horrifying practice of castration, remains a little-known and unrepented chapter of Middle Eastern history.
The Forgotten Victims: Black Slaves in Iran
Between the Safavid dynasty (1501–1736) and the Qajar dynasty (1789–1925), Iran imported hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of African slaves. These slaves, predominantly men, were castrated to prevent them from fathering children and to ensure their docility. The process of castration was barbaric and often performed under unsanitary conditions, leading to high mortality rates. Historians estimate that for every African slave successfully castrated and sent to Iran, several others died during the operation. By the 19th century, at least 2 million African slaves had been forcibly castrated within the region.
These eunuchs served as servants in royal courts, guards in harems, and laborers in the households of the elite. Unlike the Atlantic slave trade, where most slaves were exploited for agricultural labor, African slaves in Iran were seen as disposable tools of prestige and control, their humanity stripped away both literally and figuratively.
The Role of Arab Muslim Slave Traders
The African slave trade to Iran was facilitated by Arab Muslim slavers, whose involvement in slavery predated European participation. For centuries, Muslim traders from the Arabian Peninsula raided sub-Saharan Africa for slaves, supplying markets across the Middle East, North Africa, and Persia. The Quran itself condones slavery, regulating it rather than condemning it (Quran 4:3, 33:50). Islam also permitted the sexual exploitation of slaves (Quran 23:5–6), a practice that shaped the institution of slavery throughout the Islamic world.
It is worth noting that while Western nations abolished slavery through Christian-led abolitionist movements, slavery persisted in Islamic countries far longer. In Iran, the practice was only officially outlawed during the reign of Reza Shah Pahlavi in the 1920s, more than half a century after the United States’ Emancipation Proclamation.
Why the Islamic Republic’s Criticisms of American Slavery Are Hypocritical
When the Islamic Republic condemns American slavery, it conveniently ignores Iran’s complicity in perpetuating the African slave trade. It also ignores the fact that Arab Muslims played a central role in the enslavement of Africans, both as captors and traders. The hypocrisy deepens when one considers how the Islamic Republic continues to oppress its own people, engaging in practices reminiscent of slavery through forced labor, human trafficking, and systemic discrimination against minorities.
Iran’s own history should inspire humility rather than sanctimony. The Pahlavi dynasty’s abolition of slavery represented a pivotal step toward modernity and justice, yet the Islamic Republic rejects much of the Pahlavi legacy, opting instead for revisionist narratives that absolve Islam of its role in the slave trade.
American Slavery and the Arab Muslim Connection
The transatlantic slave trade, while primarily driven by European powers, relied heavily on Arab Muslim slavers who captured and sold African slaves. Historians have documented how African kingdoms often collaborated with Arab and European traders, creating a complex system of exploitation. Without Arab Muslim slavers, the transatlantic slave trade would not have been possible on the scale it occurred.
While the United States has confronted its history of slavery through national reflection and progress, the same cannot be said for Iran or the broader Islamic world. Instead, the Islamic Republic uses slavery as a political cudgel against the West while refusing to acknowledge its own culpability.
A Call for Honesty and Accountability
As an Iranian-American ex-Muslim and Christian conservative, I believe in the power of truth to heal and transform societies. Iran’s history of slavery, particularly the brutal castration of African men, is a subject that demands open acknowledgment and repentance. The hypocrisy of the Islamic Republic in condemning American slavery while ignoring its own sins is emblematic of a broader problem within political Islam: the refusal to confront uncomfortable truths.
Only by embracing honesty and accountability can societies truly move forward. Iran’s history serves as a reminder that no nation or culture is without sin. True progress lies in repentance, reform, and a commitment to human dignity—principles that find their fullest expression in the teachings of Jesus Christ, not the dictates of political Islam.
Citations
- Segal, Ronald. Islam’s Black Slaves: The Other Black Diaspora. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2001.
- Lewis, Bernard. Race and Slavery in the Middle East: An Historical Enquiry. Oxford University Press, 1990.
- Clarence-Smith, W. G. Islam and the Abolition of Slavery. Oxford University Press, 2006.
- Shirazi, Faegheh. The Veil Unveiled: The Hijab in Modern Culture. University Press of Florida, 2001.
- Hopper, Matthew. Slaves of One Master: Globalization and Slavery in Arabia in the Age of Empire. Yale University Press, 2015.
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