In the same way, we have Zumbi in Brazil, United States also have a hero that represents freedom from slavery through fighting for freedom and justice. His name is Kunta Kinte, many people don’t know, but he was a real person and his story is spread through fictional books and mini-series.

Kunta Kinte’s family arrived in Juffure, a Muslim town, one generation before Kunta Kinte was born. The Kintes were Juulas that were primarily known to be merchants and Islamic scholars. They were involved in many types of trading including slave trading. 

For many years the Muslims discussed about slavery if it was right or not and to who to sell, but many Juulas sold slaves to anyone who would buy them, and some Kintes were involved.

Kunta was sold into slavery in 1767 even with his family middle-class status, when an English man got involved in a dispute with the king of Niumi, in one of the fights an English soldier accidentally shot three fingers of the hand of the queen of Niumi. Somewhat during the confused period, someone took Kunta Kinte and deported him to America.

The series of books Roots: The Saga of an American Family was written by Alex Haley, who called his piece ‘faction’ because of the mixture of facts and fiction about Kunta Kinte’s story.

In the book Kunta was captured while he was in the woods to make a drum, he crossed the Atlantic and was sold to a man called John Waller. Kunta ran away from his owners four times, and after the last one they cut off part of his right foot. 

In the story, Kunta died when he was 67 years old after starting a new family in America when he got married to a house slaved called Bell.

The once known as James Island is now called Kunta Kinte after the most famous slave. The island was home to many captured slaves and became famous because of the number of people who were captured from there.

Alex Haley mixed real facts with fiction and was accused of copyright in the first book, but Kunta Kinte’s story is really important and was immortalized by the books.