THE CASE OF THE SLAVE SHIP, LA AMISTAD
Background Information
 In 1808, the United States outlawed the importation of new slaves from Africa,
joining England and France (who had already banned the slave trade).
 To combat this effort, Spanish slavers would buy slaves in Africa, transport them to
Cuba, re-name and register their ships and cargoes, and then proceed to the United
States, claiming that they were carrying slaves born in Cuba (which was still a legal
place to buy slaves from).
 In 1839, a ship named La Amistad (captained by Senior Ruiz) was ran aground along
the coast of Connecticut, carrying slaves. The ship was impounded, and the slaves put
in holding cells, while the legal system tried to figure out what to do with them.
 Abolitionists (anti-slavery proponents) argued that the slaves should be set free,
because Cinque, the ‘leader’ of the imprisoned blacks, told interviewers that La
Amistad was actually the Tecora, a Spanish slave ship that had carried slaves from
Africa illegally, and then stopped in Cuba to have the ship’s name changed to La
Amistad and the slaves re-registered as having been born in Havana, Cuba.

Others argued that the testimony of Cinque was false, and that the abolitionists
were just trying to make this event a political issue. Furthermore, pro-slavery
factions in the U.S. wanted the legal system to declare the black prisoners as legal
salvage, and have them put up on the slave-market for sale.
Main people involved in this case:
1. Cinque, the man chosen as the leader of the captives.
2. The Spanish, who argued that the slaves belonged to Spain, since the crew of the Amistad were
Spanish.
3. Two men of the Anti-Slavery Society, who argued that the captives should be set free and
returned to Africa.
4. The general public on both sides of the issue.
5. U.S. President Martin Van Buren (who attempted to stay uninvolved, laying the case in the
hands of the mostly Southern Supreme Court).
6. John-Quincy Adams (a former president of the United States, and son of John Adams, who was
a Founding Father).
Instructions:
Answer the below questions with a paragraph or so of text (depending on the detail required by the
question).
In your answers, be as specific as possible with the details in your answers. Any generalities can be found
on the web and will therefore not count as an answer. Convince me you actually watched the film to get
these points!
Section One: Conditions aboard the Amistad (seen about 2/3rds into the film, when one of the
captive Africans is telling his story of the voyage on the Amistad):
1. Describe the conditions aboard the Amistad, which was a common slave ship of her era.
The conditions aboard the Amistad are really bad. It is dirty, dark, smelly, and narrow. Slaves have to lie
down on top of the others to save space. They are being tied tightly by chain. They can't wear clothes.
They can get sick, starved without being cured. They are hit and tortured. They are being treated as
cargoes.
2. Why do you think the young lady with the baby jumped off of the boat?
I think the young lady with the baby jumped off the boat because she feels hopeless. Killing herself and
the baby is the only way. She can be killed if she gets sick or starved to death.
3. Why did the crew feed some of the slaves, and not the others?
The crew feeds the healthy slaves. Those slaves who are sick cannot get food because the crew thinks
feeding the sick is wasted.
Section Two: Abolitionists:
1. There were a number of different types of anti-slavery proponents involved in the film, from the
lawyers to the singers. How does the film portray these people: what seemed to be their individual
motivations for being involved in the issue?
Those abolitionists are involves to this case with different motivations. The lawyer who defends for
Cinque and others wants to help them being determined from Africa so they can get their freedom and
sail back to Africa
Other abolitionists want more than that. They want people to look at the slavery issue and spread out
that slavery is against morality. They want this case to be mentioned in newspaper so it can influence the
stopping slavery movement in the future.
Section Three :The Result of the Amistad Trial
The Supreme Court recognized the captives' right of insurrection and rejected the claim that they were
pirates or murderers:
“If then, these negroes are not slaves, but are kidnapped Africans, who, by the laws of Spain itself,
are entitled to their freedom, and were kidnapped and illegally carried to Cuba, and illegally
detained and restrained on board the Amistad; there is no pretence to say, that they are pirates or
robbers. We may lament the dreadful acts, by which they asserted their liberty, and took
possession of the Amistad, and endeavored to regain their native country; but they cannot be
deemed pirates or robbers in the sense of the law of nations...”The Amistad, 40 U.S. 518, 593 &
594.
1: What irony can be found in the fact that the courts issued this decision at a time when slavery
remained legal in the U.S.?
I think the irony in this decision is that the Supreme Court mentions the slaves' freedom and liberty but
slavery still remains legal in the U.S. And they mention about the law nations and they are following it.
The truth is that they legalize the slavery which taking away the liberty and freedom of many people.
Section Four: A general question
1. During the Supreme Court trial over the Amistad case, John Q. Adams said: "This man is black. We can
all see that. But, can we also see as easily, that which is equally true? That he is the only true hero in this
room." Who exactly is Adams speaking of, and in what ways is this person a hero?
Adams is speaking of Cinque. He says that because Cinque fights for his freedom. When he is captured and
ready to be sold, he did not give up and tried to find the way to get out of this. Adams mentions the Constitution
Amendments about pursue happiness, liberty and property which is the action Cinque is doing. He fights for his
freedom and liberty.