Walter Rodney referred to the West African coastal communities who partnered with the Europeans during the

slave trade as Local Mulatto mercenaries who came to prominence due to the necessity to sell fellow community
members as slaves. The Europeans deceived the mercenaries and lavished them with gifts so that they would
assist them in acquiring additional slaves for commerce. The desire for power and wealth drove these men to
plot war and abduction against their fellow Africans in order to acquire slaves in return for European
commodities like as firearms. This began the slave trade, with a large proportion of slaves creating suffering for
Africans and the demise of kingdoms such as Kongo-Angola and Yoruba. Small West African civilizations were
more susceptible to slave raiders because they lacked the ability to defend themselves against mercenaries
equipped with the ability to organize able-bodied men and powerful armaments such as rifles.