BY: GRACE BRIGGS

Born in Benin Son of an Ibo Chief At age 11, he and his sister were kidnapped and sold to slave traders From there he was sent to Barbados then Virginia A British naval officer purchased him EARLY LIFE AND CHILDHOOD

Equiano was promised his freedom but remained a slave His owner sent him on trading runs Slaves would be the cargo on some of these runs Equiano witnessed the cruelty inflicted on free and enslaved blacks LATER LIFE

Equiano learned how to read and write while travelling aboard ships He later converted to Christianity EDUCATION

In 1766, Equiano purchased his own freedom He chose to remain a seaman and spent some time in England From he joined the Phipps Expedition to the Arctic On a tour of the Mediterranean, he worked as a manservant In 1777, Equiano worked as a doctor’s assistant in Nicaragua Equiano attempted to do African missionary work and failed in doing so Married Susannah Cullen, an Englishwoman, and had two children FREE LIFE

After 1777, he became more active in the anti-slavery movement In 1787, he became the “commissioner of stores for the resettlement of free Africans in Sierra Leone.” he was fired after he accused a naval agent of “mismanagement” In 1789, Equiano wrote his autobiography, “The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa the African, Written by Himself” Highlighted the life of a slave and cruelty that was brought upon him There was a lot of emphasis on anti-slavery views in the autobiography 9 editions of the book were printed in his lifetime ANTI-SLAVERY ACTIVISM

Margolies, Edward. "Equiano, Olaudah." Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. Ed. Colin A. Palmer. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 9 Nov etail&id=4EC64411BA10DE84718D D25BBD68D285D A860949CD44DD74F86A A6CBCE17E&first=1 D7A7E A899D3A523BFEEFAC49D242420A BIBLIOGRAPHY