Today we arrived in Liverpool! Our first stop was the Maritime Museum and the Museum of Slave Trade. We were all a little unsure of what to expect…but one small area held a wide variety of activities. The Beatles Museum, our later destination, was less than a block away from the building that housed the Maritime Museum and the Museum of the Slave Trade. There were many different areas within the museum building. I was most interested in the slave gallery, the emigration/immigration gallery and the Titanic expedition (very fitting considering last year's movie hit). The gallery on the slave trade was entitled Transatlantic Slavery: Against Human Dignity. The gallery began with a look at African life and culture prior to the slavery years. Gradually, the hallways led to the slow and horrifying life of slavery from the perspective of the slaves. At one point, I was sitting in a reconstruction of an eighteenth century slave-trading ship, below the deck, ducking and cowering in a darkened corner, cross-legged and uncomfortable trying to imagine what it might have been like for a slave aboard the ship. It was quite frightening. There was a recording of both a slave and a captain's diary being read, and it gave the feel of encountering and living the actual experience. There were also artistic depictions of mournful slaves projected moving upon the darkened walls of the ship, making me feel as if the ghosts of thousands of sad slaves were surrounding us. I was very moved by this experience and by the detailed exhibits and depictions of slave days within the gallery. By the time I left I was very disturbed by it all, but nonetheless realized the importance of having been there.
The next gallery I entered was the gallery depicting the emigration of people from Liverpool and surrounding areas. This was an interesting step back in time, with a special section similar to that of the slave museum, set up to show the experiences of those emigrating from England and their many trials and tribulations of travel along the way. It filled me with a sense of awe, understanding for the first time what it might have been like to be one of my ancestors many generations past, when they first stepped upon the ship that would inevitably change their lives, and my own, forever.
Although there was a portion of the museum dedicated to the shipping industry in Liverpool, I must confess that I paid little attention to this part of the museum. I understand that Liverpool was a very important location for shipbuilding throughout history. What was of interest to me in this section of the museum, was the Titanic exhibit. Considering the very recent explosion in the United States and here in England of the movie Titanic, my interest was piqued to actually see some artifacts from the infamous ship. There were relics of survivors, including lifejackets and jewelry (no, not the necklace that Rose wore in the movie). There was also a visual replica of the Titanic itself, where I was quick to take note of the small number of lifeboats attached, and reminded of the tragic class issues involved in the Titanic's sinking. This room also housed many relics from the Lusitania; another brilliant, yet sinkable ship built in Liverpool.
To conclude, I have learned once again today how necessary it is to examine the past in order to understand the present, and hopefully prevent tragedy in the future. I leave you now with some of the quotes that continue to haunt me from the slavery exhibit. I must also add that on the conclusion of our weekend trip, we watched the movie "Amistad," a true story of the slave experience. For anyone that wants to understand partially how it felt to be in the reconstructed slave ship, this helps to understand the tragedy and horrors of slave history.
"The floor of their room was so covered with the blood and mucous which has proceeded from them in consequence of the flux that it resembled a slaughterhouse"
-Alexander Falconbridge- surgeon aboard a British slave-trading ship
"I had reasoned this out in my mind, there was 1 of 2 things I had a right to-liberty or death, if I could not have one, I would have the other." - Harriet Tubman
"My history is of Africa, my past is of the West Indies, my present is of England, my future is of the World."-Bertel K. Martin