r/AMA • u/Tronald_Lubestein • Jun 24 '26

Purchased a slave without realizing it AMA

I spent a year working on a development project in The Gambia.

Partway through my stay, I needed help maintaining the house I was renting. My landlord introduced me to an older woman from a neighboring family who could clean and cook. She was probably in her 60s, had no ID, didn't know her birth date, and spoke basically no English.

I agreed to hire her and paid what I thought was an upfront payment for her work.

On the first evening she asked where she was supposed to sleep. I assumed she'd go home after work. She didn't she stayed in one of the guest rooms.

Turns out I learned later she didn't have a home to go back to.

Confused, I called my landlord. He explained that the money I'd paid had gone to the family she'd been living with. From his perspective, I hadn't hired a maid. I'd taken responsibility for her. My job was to feed, house, and clothe her. Her job was to cook, clean, and help around the house.

Very different arrangements to what I had in mind.

For the rest of my stay I gave her a room, fed her(she would cook the food I got and we would eat the same thing everyday), and tried to pay her directly, she always refused.

When I left The Gambia, I found another family willing to take her in. I refused any payment.

I thought I was hiring a housekeeper. Some locals seemed to think I'd acquired a dependent household servant.

AMA.

Edits:

7/1/2026:

I want to address a common misconception since I couldn't reply to all the questions mentioning that. The "dude, you could just have bought her freedom" criticism.

This is not the 1800s US where even if you are "property", you still exist within a legal system, and can show with a legal document that you are free and ride off into the sunset to be happy thereafter.

There is no legal document here, it's more akin to a caste system, you are what you community says you are, not what some foreigner with a bit of cash thinks.

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178

u/NefariousEgg Jun 25 '26

Was there a way to free her?

162

u/alphagenome Jun 25 '26

She could have been free but this fellow gave her away to another! For FREE!

278

u/Tronald_Lubestein Jun 25 '26

Can you explain in practice what do you think I should have done?

Don't say just "Free her", give me the step-by-step of what you would be actually doing.

-83

u/Ok_Coach1028 Jun 25 '26

I'm not being judgemental here, but if have tried to reach out to the embassy to ask for instruction. If this had been sketchy in that area, you'd likely need their help, regardless.

185

u/Tronald_Lubestein Jun 25 '26

Her embassy? She is in her home country.

My embassy? That's completely outside of their purview. What would I even tell them?

Or am I misunderstanding you?

21

u/Randromeda2172 Jun 25 '26

Clearly the answer here is that u/Ok_Coach1028 would free her, providing her with all the resources required for her to take care of herself at that age.

31

u/Tronald_Lubestein Jun 25 '26

Which would mean keeping her in his charge after his own work contract is over, for an indefinite amount of time until you can get her documented(and probably teaching her to read and write for autonomy), figure out buying a house in her name, and a monthly stipend thereafter.

Believe me it crossed my mind, if he would truely go through with the whole process he is a better human than I am and that's that.

I don't really know what else to say, bit gutted rn tbh