On the Shores of the Atlantic Ocean: Bimbia, the Place of Shame and Silence

A visit to Bimbia—the forgotten slave port at the foot of Mount Cameroon—reveals the silence, suffering, and historical wounds of a place where paradise was turned into human-made hell.

On the Shores of the Atlantic Ocean: Bimbia, the Place of Shame and Silence

At the foot of Mount Cameroon lies the Atlantic Ocean. Standing there, one sees on one side the highest peak in Central and West Africa, and on the other, an endless expanse of water. Looking at the beauty of the vegetation and the rhythm of the landscape, one might think God planted His paradise there.

But when you listen to history, you learn that human beings planted their hell on this very spot.
If you want to understand how humans turned a paradise into an inferno, you must visit Bimbia.

Bimbia, the Place of Shame

Now abandoned in the forest—where nature slowly tries to heal the wounds of the past—Bimbia remains a place of shame, a reminder of human cruelty. For centuries, human beings used this place as a market where they sold other human beings as merchandise.

When I visited Bimbia, I felt a deep shame to belong to the human species that debased itself to the point of practicing, for centuries, the abominable transatlantic slave trade.

Bimbia, the Place of Silence

Across a vast area, our guide showed us the remains of different stone structures and explained their functions. Upon returning from Bimbia, I could have remained silent, as most visitors may do when faced with this painful collective memory.

But with time, my silence became heavy. As the days passed, I realized increasingly that if I lacked the words to explain, I had to, at least, find the words to point a finger toward this place of horror—so that together, as human beings, we can declare: never again.

In the coming days, I will present some of these structures, fully aware of the limits of human language, which can never fully express what this place represents.

And you—have you ever felt shame in the face of human cruelty?
How can we make these crimes of the past known, and what must we do today to help repair them?
Share your thoughts in the comments.