Book description
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, 300,000 people or more
became slaves there in all but name. Urchins were swept up from
London's streets to labour in the tobacco fields, brothels were raided
to provide 'breeders' for Virginia and hopeful migrants were duped
into signing as indentured servants, unaware they would become
chattels who could be bought, sold and gambled away.
Drawing on letters, diaries, and court and government archives, the
authors demonstrate that the brutalities associated with black slavery
alone were perpetrated on whites throughout British rule.
The trade ended with American independence but the British still
tried to sell convicts in their former colonies, which prompted one of
the most audacious plots in Anglo-American history.
This is a saga of exploitation and cruelty spanning 170 years that
has been submerged under the overwhelming memory of black slavery.
White Cargo brings the brutal, uncomfortable story to the surface.
Don Jordan is a television producer and director who has worked on
dozens of documentaries and dramas.
Michael Walsh spent twelve years as a reporter and presenter on
World in Action and has won six awards.
