How Black Babies Were Used As Alligator Bait By Hunters In America [Bitter History]



In 418 B.C Herodotus, the Greek philosopher who is known as the father of history said “a man who does not know anything about the events that took place before he or she was born will remain forever a child.”

We must go a step further by saying that “any human being who refuses to learn from his or her history is condemned to repeating its mistakes and as such will share the same fate in the consequences of such mistakes.”

Africa is a continent rich in history. As we enjoy telling stories of our golden past, it is important that we also give a complete and undiluted account of our journey through slavery and man’s inhumanity to man.

Of all the atrocities committed against the enslaved Africans in the Americas and Europe, the use of babies as alligator bait is one which leaves anyone with a conscience, with a tear in the eye. Imagining that the child in question was yours, would send shivers down your spine.

These things are not easy to say, but we must say them, for posterity sake. And for the sake of the present and future.

Alligator bait, also called gator bait, was the evil practice of using infant African children as bait to lure alligators out from water to land. This practice was popular in Louisiana and Florida, and other parts of the South in America.

During that era, there was a high demand for alligator skin, which was used in the production of leather shoes, jackets, belts, and other leather materials. Alligator skin was very profitable in the 1800s-1900s. But the hunters often had accidents and lost their arms or lives as they rustled the swampy waters in their attempt to attract the alligators to the surface at night.

So, their other viable option was to steal slave babies and use them as bait. They didn’t find any rodents, or chickens, or rabbits, or little goats. Those were too valuable. It had to be a baby that a woman carried for 9 months under intense pain, brutality, and hard work.

This account has been denied by many in their attempt to cover up this atrocity. But there are oral accounts, documentaries, and publications to substantiate our right to closure, empathy and healing.

In 1923 a publication on ‘Time Magazine ‘reported that “From Chipley, Fla., it was reported that colored babies were being used for alligator bait. The infants were left to play in shallow water while expert riflemen watch from concealment nearby. When a saurian approach his prey, he is shot by the riflemen. The Chipley Chamber of Commerce said the story was “a silly lie, false and absurd.” Maybe so, but it was widely reported in the American press, so it was at least believable among white Americans of the time.”

To give further evidence of this vile practice, photos and postcards found in the Jim Crow museum shed clear light on this. A man in Florida had a picture framed and put on his wall showing nine naked little African boys with the words “Alligator Bait” written below.

o further buttress this account, on June 3, 1908, the ‘Washington Times’ reported that a zookeeper at the New York Zoological Gardens baited “Alligators with pickaninnies” out of their winter quarters. He sent two African slave children into an enclosure that was housing alligators and crocodiles numbering more than 25.

The reptiles had to be led out of their winter tanks into summer tanks so they could be seen by people. They didn’t find any other way to do this, other than placing these children in the tank to lure the alligators and crocodiles out. How artistic!!!

The article read that: Two small colored children happened to drift through the reptile house among the throng of visitors” and they were “pressed into service. The alligators “wobbled out as quick as they could after the ebony mites, who darted around the tank just as the pursuing monsters fell with grunts of chagrin into the water. The alligators were “coaxed” into their summer quarters by “plump little Africans.

There were sources who claimed that the mothers were paid $2 (Two Dollars) for their babies to be used as bait. They also claimed that the babies were not hurt. But those were just false accounts, to hide the heinous crimes. Which sane mother would allow her infant to be tied with a rope around the neck and kept by the river or lake banks as bait? No mother would do that. And at the time, African slaves could not read or write, so how did they read the adverts and .....

more on the article here
http://www.soundlala.com/news.php?id=1158

From time immemorial, the african race as suffered severely and guess what... Still suffering till today.


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It's well

sheer inhumanity... They could easily have made use of small livestock or even dummies drenched in blood. I think it was just punitive moves..prolly for recalcitrant slaves

Very disheartening!

Am not black biko..am dark or brown skinned...

They can be white but I can never be black

I find this hard to believe. I will need further research to properly authenticate the report. From what I know slaves were expensive commodities. There is no way slave masters will run such an act if they didn't have enough manpower to begin with.

Evil has no beginning and end . It's a continum

meobizy:
I find this hard to believe. I will need further research to properly authenticate the report. From what I know slaves were expensive commodities. There is no way slave masters will run such an act if they didn't have enough manpower to begin with.

they did quite d unthinkable able because to them black were nothing

skyhighweb:
they did quite d unthinkable able because to them black were nothing

...but expensive commodities. I can believe them using aged slaves for such but babies, nah. It is common knowledge that calves grow into bulls in future. I don’t see why they won’t put 2 and 2 together regarding slaves.

Another thing I recognize is alligator bait does not mean the babies got eaten, killed or harmed. They were probably used only to bait the creatures then returned to the parents/masters when done.