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In the Americas, the captives were washed, shaved and rubbed down with palm oil, ready for sale by auction to planters or specialised wholesalers. About 40 percent of the captives were taken to the Caribbean.

Planters immediately started the process of obliterating the identities of the Africans. They broke up any bonds that were formed and sought to wipe out any links, thoughts and memories of their past. New working and living conditions were forced on the captives and in Jamaica, they were restricted from communicating in their native tongues and forced to learn the English language. This process was called “seasoning” and lasted two to three years. Some Africans found the treatment unbearable and chose suicide.

Europeans developed views of their own racial superiority to promote their self-interest. They tried to justify the barbarity of their treatment of the slaves by using biblical arguments that Africans were less than humans. The kind of slavery that was practiced by the Europeans was called chattel slavery. A chattel slave is a person owned and treated as a piece of property. He or she could be bought or sold and forced to work in any condition without pay. Chattel slaves had no legal rights and could be punished, raped and abused by the owner at will. Children born to chattel slaves also became chattel slaves.