This is a bit of an uncommon question but I discovered this paper on slavery, gender relations, and divorce in Abeokuta, Nigeria in the early 1900’s. I guess I’m a little shocked because I thought the British had outlawed the transatlantic slave trade decades prior and the US had emancipated all of theirs in the 1860’s. So, what was going on in Nigeria at the time?
Why was there still slavery?
I think the article answers your question. What do you think about this section from your article:
The court in response granted Aina freedom from Lajubu without the payment of a redemption fee, which was normally requested of slaves who wanted to buy their freedom. Lajubu was verbally reprimanded to desist from the slave trade, because at the time, the British government no longer recognized the existence of slavery, and the courts could not recognize and directly enforce obligations of slavery. The court concluded that the case ‘was a question of trafficking (slave trade) and marriage according to local custom’.