Indigenous Resistance to Slavery by the Builsa People of Northern Ghana

Abstract

There is enough historical evidence to show that the northern part of Ghana was affected by slavery in many ways. My thesis discusses slavery in Builsa territory located in the present day Upper East Region of Ghana. I pursued the studies using a number of strategies such as oral interviews, personal observation and participation and archival search to better understand the reason behind slavery in Builsa. Of special interest in this research is the way slavery and memories of slave trade are re-enacted in the yearly Feok festival. I analyzed the material artifacts displayed during the festival to draw conclusions on the origin and progression, and the subsequent strategies that were used to resist slavery and slave trade.