The replica of the schooner “Amistad”, built in the United States, is hosting visitors in Santo Domingo. The ship is a replica of the ship that in 1839 was taken over by slaves off the coast of Cuba and eventually made port in the United States, where the slaves were arrested and jailed and later freed after a famous trial.
United States historians consider the Amistad incident as an important step towards abolition of slavery.
The trial itself exacerbated the differences between the slaveholding and free states that eventually led to the American Civil War of 1860. The Amistad will be in port through next Tuesday, and will then depart for Cape Haitian.
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