"Personally I concluded that no place in the world was entirely safe for an African, and that for many of us, survival depended on perpetual migration."(p.385)
Background:
After spending time in her new home of Freetown, Aminata was having second thoughts about living there as it was next door to a slave trading post.
Commentary:
Throughout "The Book of Negroes" travelling to avoid conflict was a key component for Aminata's survival. On Applebee's farm, Aminata was threatened from the harsh living conditions. Many "Negroes died from the pox"(p.150),while working on the farm so they only sure way to avoid beatings and sickness was to leave the farm. Aminata unintentionally forced Applebee to sell her off the farm and to Solomon Lindo which eventually led her to Nova Scotia. In Nova Scotia the whites became furious with the blacks because the whites felt they were loosing jobs to the Negroes who were working for next to nothing. The whites began "killing folks"(p.340) and "They've gone crazy"(p.340). Realizing Nova Scotia was now too dangerous for an African to live in, Aminata and the other blacks had to find a new place to live. With the arrival of John Clarkson, the opportunity of moving and starting a colony in Freetown became the best option. Living in Freetown beside a slave trading post worried Aminata as she felt the residents of Freetown could be taken as slaves once again. As soon as Aminata saw the opportunity to leave Freetown and live in London, she left. Transportation as a means of survival has been evident throughout Canadian history. Some groups of Aboriginals often had to travel for survival. When the Buffalo or other animals migrated and moved to avoid weather changes, the Aboriginals travelled with them as these animals were a big part of their diet. Travis Kalanick once said "We want transportation as reliable as running water". I agree with this statement because many people even today need to travel to go to work or to escape wars and conflicts similar to Aminata.
Moments after the riot on the slave ship.
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