Soon more white men came to stare and point. Without warning I was pushed to my knees and felt a terrible fire in my arm that made me weak with pain. Stumbling I was led away to a cart with some men of my land and taken to where I am now.
Read about arrival in the Americas for Okechukwu, Kwame,and Kofi.
Plantation owners examined the captives when they arrived in the Americas. They were watched and touched, often in personal and offensive ways.
There were different ways of buying slaves. Oyeladun is experiencing the most common method: a public auction. Some buyers pre-ordered slaves from traders on the understanding that they would buy a certain number from them each year.
Oyeladun is being branded. Slaves were often marked with the initials of the person who purchased them. The skin was rubbed with oil (to prevent the metal sticking), the hot metal was pressed to the flesh, then the skin was again wiped with oil.