La Amistad: A Relic of the Brutal Atlantic Slave Trade Joins Cuba and the United States

A non-profit organization has built and launched a replica of the slave ship, La Amistad, which is to set sail from New England to the harbor in Havanna in commeration of the famous events that surrounded the ship and its symbolism of the shared slave history of both the US and Cuba. La Amistad was a slave trading vessel whose human cargo mutineed against the crew in 1839 and then sailed the ship all the way to Long Island in New York. Once in the United States their slave status came into question and John Quincey Adams argued the slaves' case before the US Supreme Court, eventually earning their freedom.

The CEO of the non-profit stated that, "We're completely aware of all the issues currently surrounding US and Cuba but we approach this from the point of view that we have this unique history that both societies are connected by. It gives us an opportunity to transcend contempoary issues."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35933380/ns/world_news-americas/