The Trans-Atlantic slave trade was responsible for the forced migration of between 12 to 15 million people. From Africa to the Western Hemisphere, the slave trade not only displaced millions of Africans to a life of exploitation, but also a painful death. Nobody knew the total number of people who died during slavery in Africa. The Atlantic slave trade Many died a slowly painful death during transportation and imprisonment, or in horrendous conditions during the Middle Passage. The voyage from Africa