Reflecting on the ongoing enslavement of black Africans in Mauritania while the U.S. celebrates Juneteenth

By Timothy Page

Mauritania stands as a stark reminder of slavery’s enduring legacy in the modern world. Despite official abolition decrees, hereditary racial slavery – similar to the slavery system that existed in the U.S. prior to the civil war – is still widespread in the West African nation of Mauritania, where White Arabs and Berbers have enslaved Black Africans for centuries¹. In 1981 Mauritania became the last country to formally abolish slavery, yet the practice persists today, making it what many scholars term “slavery’s last stronghold.”

Historical Context: The Trans-Saharan Slave Trade

The origins of slavery in Mauritania cannot be understood without examining the broader context of the trans-Saharan slave trade, which predates the more widely known Atlantic slave trade by centuries. The Arab Muslim slave trade, also known as the Trans-Saharan or Eastern slave trade, is recognised as the longest in history, spanning over 1,300 years². This extensive trade network forcibly removed millions of Africans from their homelands and established patterns of domination that persist today.

Arab slave traders in the region that would become Mauritania capture darker-skinned people from sub-Saharan Africa and force them to work without pay³. According to experts, “You can trace this back for 2,000 years,” said Kevin Bales, CEO of Free the Slaves³. This historical foundation created the social hierarchies that continue to define Mauritanian society.

The trans-Saharan trade differed significantly from the Atlantic trade in both scope and character. The Arab slave trade was most active in West Asia, North Africa (Trans-Saharan slave trade), and Southeast Africa (Red Sea slave trade and Indian Ocean slave trade), and rough estimates place the number of Africans enslaved in the twelve centuries prior to the 20th century at between six million to ten million⁴. Unlike the trans-Atlantic slave trade to the New World, Arabs supplied African slaves to the Muslim world, which at its peak stretched over three continents from the Atlantic to the Far East⁵.

Social Structure and Racial Dynamics

Contemporary Mauritanian society reflects centuries of racialized slavery through its rigid social stratification. While the enslavers are of Arab-Berber descent, most slaves are of ethnic African descent. Almost all political and economic power is in the hands of the Arab-Berber elite, which means the majority of society (70%) remains significantly marginalized⁶.

The dominant group, known as Bidan or “White Moors,” consists of Beydan (‘White Moors’) are descended from Berber Arabs and black African groups from the Sahara⁷. In contrast, the enslaved population, known as Haratines or “Black Moors,” represents The black African origin of Haratines (‘Black Moors’) is beyond doubt. Their language, culture and identity are, however, Arab, the product of centuries of enslavement to Beydan masters⁷.

This cultural assimilation through enslavement has created a complex social dynamic where Beydan and Haritines can appear racially indistinct and both speak dialects of Hassaniyya related to Bedouin Arabic⁷. However, despite linguistic and cultural similarities, Moor society is traditionally divided on social and descent criteria. The slave community is divided into three levels: the total subject, the part slave, and the true Haratin⁷.

The French colonial period (1904-1960) represented a crucial yet contradictory phase in Mauritania’s slavery history. The French colonized Mauritania in 1904 during the Scramble for Africa. Mauritania and other territories owned by France were known as sociétés esclavagistes or “slave societies” because slavery was a tradition with which the French interacted⁸. Rather than immediately dismantling the slavery system, The French reshaped slavery socially⁸, often accommodating existing power structures while gradually introducing changes.

Contemporary Slavery: The Reality of Hereditary Bondage

Despite formal abolition, slavery persists in Mauritania through hereditary bonds that trap entire families in servitude. Mauritania is one of the last countries in the world where people are still born into slavery and literally owned by other people, facing a lifetime of abuse and forced labour¹⁰. The scale of this crisis is staggering, with an estimated 10% to 20% of the population living in slavery¹¹.

The contemporary slavery system in Mauritania operates through a complex web of ownership, exploitation, and social control that mirrors historical chattel slavery. Most slave families consist of dark-skinned people whose ancestors were captured by lighter-skinned Arab Berbers centuries ago. Slaves typically are not bought and sold — only given as gifts, and bound for life. Their offspring automatically become slaves, too¹².

Persons subjected to slavery are forced to work without pay as cattle herders and domestic servants¹³. The exploitation is particularly severe for women and children. Masters lend their slaves’ labor to other individuals, female slaves are sexually exploited and children are made to work and rarely receive an education. Women of child-bearing age have a harder time emancipating because they are producers of slave labor and perceived as extremely valuable¹⁴.

The living conditions of enslaved people in Mauritania reflect the dehumanizing nature of this system. The majority of black Mauritanians live in sub-human conditions. In cities, they live in hovels with no bathroom, kitchen, or running water. Rural areas are even more inhumane. There are more slaves, life is harder, there is more hardship. The majority of Blacks are homeless, jobless¹⁵.

This descent-based slavery system treats human beings as property with violent enforcement, affecting not only those in direct bondage but creating slave-like conditions for up to 500,000 more people¹⁶.

International Response and Pressure

The international community has gradually recognized the severity of the crisis in Mauritania, though responses have been inconsistent and often insufficient. Various forms of diplomatic, economic, and civil society pressure have been applied with mixed results.

United States Actions

The United States has taken some of the most concrete steps in response to Mauritania’s slavery crisis. U.S. President Donald Trump ended trade benefits over the practice of slavery¹⁷, with the United States announcing it would end trade benefits to the West African country over the continuation of slavery¹⁸. This action removed Mauritania from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade preference program, representing a significant economic consequence for the country’s continued tolerance of slavery.

European Union Response

The European Union’s response has been more cautious and has drawn criticism from activists and human rights organizations. Written replies by the EU High Representative to MEPs’ parliamentary questions indicate that the European Union is yet to muster an appropriate response to ongoing gross human rights violations in Mauritania, most notably with regard to the widespread practice of slavery¹⁹.

Anti-slavery activists have called for stronger European action. One of Mauritania’s top anti-slavery campaigners called on Europe to stop doing business with and giving aid to the West African country, which has one of the world’s highest rates of slavery²⁰.

Civil Society and NGO Pressure

International human rights organizations have maintained consistent pressure on Mauritania. Amnesty International and 32 other human rights organizations have urged Mauritania to release anti-slavery activists and address the underlying conditions that perpetuate slavery²¹. Organizations like Anti-Slavery International work directly with local partners such as SOS-Esclaves to help people escape slavery and rebuild their lives.

Limitations of International Pressure

Despite these efforts, deeply entrenched belief systems, practices, and governmental and societal structures that exist in Mauritania secure an environment that allows slavery to continue to thrive²². The persistence of slavery indicates that foreign governments and businesses hold great power in their willingness to engage with Mauritanian leaders. By withholding financial aid and business deals international players have the opportunity to create meaningful pressure for change²³.

The case of Mauritania demonstrates how historical patterns of enslavement, rooted in the trans-Saharan slave trade dominated by Arab and Berber traders, continue to shape contemporary society. The legacy of over a millennium of systematic enslavement of Black Africans by Arab-Berber populations has created enduring social hierarchies that resist legal abolition. Understanding this history is crucial for addressing the ongoing human rights crisis in Mauritania and recognizing the often-overlooked role of Arab and Muslim traders in the historical African slave trade.

The international community’s response to slavery in Mauritania must account for these deep historical roots and the complex social dynamics they have created. Only through acknowledging this history can effective strategies be developed to finally end what remains one of the world’s most persistent forms of human bondage.

The Continuing Struggle for Universal Freedom

The persistence of slavery in Mauritania serves as a sobering reminder that the fight for human freedom remains unfinished. While nations around the world commemorate historical moments of emancipation—from the abolition of slavery in various countries to celebrations like Juneteenth in the United States—the reality of hundreds of thousands still living in bondage demands that these commemorations inspire continued action rather than complacency. The legacy of emancipation movements teaches us that freedom is not a destination but an ongoing struggle that requires constant vigilance and international solidarity. As we honor past victories against slavery, we must channel that same moral urgency toward liberating those who remain enslaved today. The tools that ended historical slavery—international pressure, economic sanctions, grassroots activism, and unwavering moral conviction—remain relevant in confronting modern slavery. Only when the last enslaved person in Mauritania and elsewhere gains their freedom can humanity truly claim to have fulfilled the promise of universal human dignity that drives all movements for liberation.

Footnotes:

¹ Arab Reform Initiative. “Ending Hereditary Slavery in Mauritania: Bidan (Whites) and Black ‘Slaves’ in 2021.” April 21, 2022. https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/ending-hereditary-slavery-in-mauritania-bidan-whites-and-black-slaves-in-2021/

² FairPlanet. “Forgotten slavery: The Arab-Muslim slave trade.” https://www.fairplanet.org/dossier/beyond-slavery/forgotten-slavery-the-arab-muslim-slave-trade-sex-trafficking/

³ CNN. “Slavery’s last stand.” https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2012/03/world/mauritania.slaverys.last.stronghold/index.html

⁴ Wikipedia. “History of slavery in the Muslim world.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_slavery_in_the_Muslim_world

⁵ Humanities LibreTexts. “4.2: TransSaharan Slave Trade.” December 31, 2023. https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/Lumen_Learning/Book:_History_of_World_Civilization_II-2_(Lumen)/04:_2:_African_Slave_Trade/04.2:_TransSaharan_Slave_Trade

⁶ Frontpage Magazine. “Arab Elites’ Racial Slavery Against Africans in Mauritania.” June 2025. https://www.frontpagemag.com/arab-elites-racial-slavery-against-africans-in-mauritania/

⁷ Minority Rights Group. “Haratines in Mauritania.” April 12, 2024. https://minorityrights.org/communities/haratines/

⁸ Wikipedia. “Slavery in Mauritania.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Mauritania

⁹ Arab Center DC. “Slavery in Mauritania: The Long Road to Real Emancipation.” August 17, 2022. https://arabcenterdc.org/resource/slavery-in-mauritania-the-long-road-to-real-emancipation/

¹⁰ Anti-Slavery International. “Descent-based slavery in Mauritania.” July 30, 2024. https://www.antislavery.org/what-we-do/mauritania/

¹¹ CNN. “Slavery’s last stand.” https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2012/03/world/mauritania.slaverys.last.stronghold/index.html

¹² CNN. “Slavery’s last stand.” https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2012/03/world/mauritania.slaverys.last.stronghold/index.html

¹³ U.S. Department of State. “Mauritania.” 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report. https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/countries/2013/215516.htm

¹⁴ Wikipedia. “Slavery in Mauritania.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Mauritania

¹⁵ Arab Reform Initiative. “Racialized Hereditary Slavery in Mauritania: Interview with Activist Abidine Maettalla.” August 27, 2021. https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/racialized-hereditary-slavery-in-mauritania-interview-with-activist-abidine-maettalla/

¹⁶ Frontpage Magazine. “Arab Elites’ Racial Slavery Against Africans in Mauritania.” June 2025. https://www.frontpagemag.com/arab-elites-racial-slavery-against-africans-in-mauritania/

¹⁷ Reuters. “Mauritanian activists hail U.S. decision to end trade deal over slavery.” November 6, 2018. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mauritania-slavery-us/mauritanian-activists-hail-u-s-decision-to-end-trade-deal-over-slavery-idUSKCN1NB24S/

¹⁸ AP News. “US, rights groups pressure Mauritania over slavery.” November 8, 2018. https://apnews.com/article/daa89a5c28274d228bf595768ed0b1c1

¹⁹ UNPO. “EU Foreign Policy on Mauritania Scrutinised by MEPs: Adequate Response to Slavery Still Pending.” https://unpo.org/article/18188?id=18188

²⁰ Reuters. “Europe must cut ties with Mauritania, anti-slavery politician says.” January 9, 2019. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mauritania-slavery-europe/europe-must-cut-ties-with-mauritania-anti-slavery-politician-says-idUSKCN1P316M/

²¹ AP News. “US, rights groups pressure Mauritania over slavery.” November 8, 2018. https://apnews.com/article/daa89a5c28274d228bf595768ed0b1c1

²² International Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities. “Hereditary Slavery Shackles Mauritania.” 2021. https://ideas.repec.org/a/rfa/journl/v9y2021i1p1-6.html

²³ International Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities. “Hereditary Slavery Shackles Mauritania.” 2021. https://ideas.repec.org/a/rfa/journl/v9y2021i1p1-6.html