[1] Why does the U.S. government torture people?

U.S.

SLAVES

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture

Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

"Brown. Fugitive Slave," is an article published in his newsletter Africultures is an evocation of

runaways through the eyes of Fabrice Monteiro. An article that is timely to commemorate the

163 th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in Guadeloupe, 27 May 2011 .

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

"Maroon" is a term borrowed from the Spanish "cimarron," meaning "living on the peaks."

It comes from a word "Arawak" defining domestic animals returned to the wild, and by

extension, runaway slaves. The "Maroon" was a terrible threat to the colonial system, they were

likely to provoke a civil war at any time. Fugitive slaves were monitored continuously and the

sentences at the slightest deviation were particularly severe, they had to make an impression.

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

Slaves who tried to escape suffering the punishment described by the law then they were made to

wear a heavy iron necklace with long stems, which had the function to hang in the brush and

hamper any escape. In the same spirit, they existed in shackles bells, can hear every movement

of the slave. The slave who dared to speak a bit to his master suffered the punishment of the Iron

Mask. Similarly, during the harvest of sugarcane, were put in iron masks to hungry and thirsty

slaves to prevent them from tasting or eating the cane.

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

During childhood in Benin, Fabrice Monteiro is marked by the cartoon "The Passengers of the

Wind" of Bud Francis. Part of the adventure takes place in Ouidah, Benin, home village of his

father's family. He is fascinated by the realism of images, it recognizes the scene drawn, the

faces are familiar to him. It is in these pages he discovered these strange necklaces worn by some

slaves to keep them from escaping. His father tells him the story of his family and why he wears

a name like many other Portuguese Benin. His ancestor was named Ayedabo Adagoun Odo, his

native Nigeria. He is enslaved by the Portuguese and sent to Brazil. He returned to Benin years

later, freed by the name of Pedro Monteiro.

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

Sensitive to the issue of the slave trade and the role of this small village on the coast of Benin,

Fabrice decides to explore the subject photographically to contribute to the memory of slavery.

From the * CODE BLACK, lithographs and of the few original photos of slaves, Fabrice plans

reconstructs five models of barriers used to punish or deter the slaves of their escape. It is from

these plans that two young blacksmiths Benin reproduce barriers staged in this photographic

series. To obtain an effect of chiaroscuro, he chose a modern approach to treatment of light. He

designed a black box, allowing a mobile studio to meet its models through the streets of Ouidah.

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Brown Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice

Monteiro

* The BLACK CODE was developed by the French minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1616 - 1683)

and promulgated in March 1685 by Louis XIV. [source: Fabrice Monteiro ( Article published by

Africultures on 05/05/2011)]

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice Monteiro

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice Monteiro

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

"Marrons. Les esclaves fugitifs" (Runaway Fugitive Slaves) photographed by Fabrice Monteiro

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

Fabrice Monteiro's Amazing Images of Brown. Fugitive Slaves In Slave Torture Devices

RON'S COMMENTS: Yes, these powerful images are disturbing. It reminds us that human

beings sit at the forefront of ALL enslavement. The state-sponsored institutionalization of

human trafficking and bondage for profit involves human beings. Millions upon millions of

nameless, faceless people who toiled for the enrichment of plutocrats, merchants, kings, queens,

aristocrats, planters, shipbuilders, bankers, insurance brokers, shareholders and the like. They

were never paid, never thanked, even after emancipation never made whole. I honor their spirit

of survival.

This small blog tries to offer a space to historically discuss and make sense of their inhuman

bondage