Chapter 2, The Auction Block Summary

The auction block was a frequent sight during slavery. Slave owners usually sold their slaves to get out of debt or sell a "problem" slave, one who was belligerent or ran away often. Sometimes slaves were traded or sold in an informal process through two businessmen. Often, their masters sold them to slave traders who resold them at an auction. At the auction, they were chained together, sometimes even with padlocks around their necks, and marched to the area two-by-two, usually singing praise songs to cover up their misery and sorrow.

Just like with the stock market, the slave trade was dependent on the economy of the country. When things were good, the prices for slaves were high. When the economy was down, prices were down. Sometimes there would be a lot of trading and other times...