Dakar, Senegal is the westernmost point of the African continent. This placed it closest to the Americas, and, unfortunately, made it the choice port for the slave trade.
The focal point of our visit to Senegal was a short ferry ride from Dakar to the tiny Ile de Goree, Goree Island. At various times Portuguese, Dutch, British and French-occupied, it boasts a unique concentration of colonial architecture and sleepy backwater atmosphere, belying its association with the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade. Roughly twelve million slaves were transported across the Atlantic from the 16th through to the 19th centuries.
Our guide for this visit was Dr. Johnnetta Cole, Director of the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of African Art. Johnnetta gave us insights and personal family testimony of the symbolic power of Goree, as well as introducing us to this West African society of music, colorful dress and seaside culture.
We were privileged to experience the Senegal National Girls’ Choir performance in the historic Maison des Esclaves on Goree, with beautiful and haunting songs. Another cultural treat was the presentation in Dakar of the life and work of Senegal’s famed sculptor Ousmane Sow during an afternoon meeting with him.
Visitors typically enjoy the extensive beaches, seafood, craftwork, music and historic culture of Dakar and the surrounding areas. Dakar is a busy urban African city, working to create political stability and economic growth, with the ocean dominating all parts of daily life. Ninety four percent of Senegal is Muslim, with the Sufi brotherhoods dominating daily life patterns.
