The Great Mosque of Djenné (Wikimedia Commons)
West African Ruler Abubakari II Brought Africans to America Before Columbus
Christopher Columbus wasn’t responsible for Africans ultimately coming to America. Abubakari II voyaged to America almost 200 years before the Italian colonizer, as scholar Gaoussou Diawara says in his book, “The Saga of Abubakari II.” In the 14th century, Abukari II, also known as Mansa Qu, ruled Mali, which experts believe was one of the richest and largest empires in the world. Diawara says, in 1311, the monarch handed his ruling duties over to his brother, Kankou Moussa, so Abubakari could explore across the Atlantic Ocean.