Shameful now. But when slavery was one of the natural estates of man, slaves were merely a product for trading. Yes, condemn it by todays standards, of course. But to understand it completely it is necessary to understand the context of the time. Understanding is necessary for control of the trade. Lack of understanding is the primary driver of the present day slave trade, for the practitioners.

I am reminded of the author of the hymn, "Amazing Grace". He had an epiphany at sea that changed his life and affected the course of history which echo to this day. Amazing Grace - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bill Moyers did a PBS program on the song that is itself, amazing.