In the West Indies (Barbados) he was put up for sale to work in the sugar plantations. Then in 1766, he was sold to a Virginian farmer to be a slave there. He was a slave in North America for ten years, and then he was allowed to buy his freedom. He left North American and went to Great Britain. In Great Britain he worked as a barber and became an abolish nest. He spoke out against slavery and in 1789 wrote a book about his life called "The Interesting Narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African", written by himself. This was thought to be the first book written by a former slave.

In 1745, Equiano was born in Benin, which in now Virginia, he was a member of the farming village of Iseeke, they were in the IBO tribe. Equiano wrote in his autobiography that he was brought up to be a farmer and a great warrior. He was the youngest child and his mother would dress him up to look like a great

Then Equiano was sold to a master in England. He got to travel to many European ports and also fought for British in the Seven Years War. Equiano tells that his time in England was pleasant and safe. He was then sold to a Quaker merchant Robert King, who put him to work on the island of Montserrat. Here he saw cruel treatment of slaves. Slaves were branded with the initials of their master's names. They were also beaten and tortured for minor mistakes such as letting a pot boil over. Equiano was fortunate, he was finally allowed to be a paid seaman on Robert King's ship and then allowed to purchase his freedom, he then returned to England.

It was in England where he fought against slavery and wrote his autobiography in 1789. Equiano survived the horror of being a slave, losing his family and his tribal identity and heritage. Even with all these horrible things that happened to him, he was still able to help other slaves and to end slavery for good.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)