John Dramani Mahama has said the transatlantic slave trade was deliberately designed to strip Africans of their humanity. He made the remarks at a slavery-focused event at the United Nations headquarters on March 24. He argued that the system was built on false ideas of racial superiority with no scientific basis. According to him, such beliefs wrongly placed whiteness above blackness to justify exploitation. Mahama also criticised the term “slave,” saying it erases the identity and dignity of those affected.
He stressed that those involved were human beings who were trafficked and then enslaved. He added that injustices persisted because Africans were treated as property rather than people. The president urged a global shift in language and perspective to restore dignity and recognise the humanity of enslaved Africans.