His globe trotting vacation has taken him from the Mediterranean vistas of the French Riviera to Ghana’s cape coast.
Steve Harvey was brought to tears on Saturday during a visit to a castle that housed the horrors of the slave trade centuries ago.
The 62-year-old Family Feud host was joined by his family at the site of the historical atrocities, which was originally erected by Portuguese slavers.
Steve’s visit to the Elmina Castle included a tour into the dark structure.
The castle, originally erected in 1482, is the oldest extant European structure in sub-Saharan Africa.
Steve, who was dressed in a canary yellow tunic with purple patterns around the collar and sleeves, appeared to well up with tears during the visit to the site.
The overwhelmed comedian was seen resting on a set of stone steps and bowing his head while touring the building.
Outside, a guide explained the Elmina Castle’s dark history.
The building was originally erected as a trade outpost, but it was eventually converted into one of the busiest stops on the Atlantic slave trade.
Dutch forces seized the outpost in the 17th Century, though they continued the slave trade started by its Portuguese builders.
Others on the tour saw Steve and his family exploring the cramped spaces were slaves were confined before being shipped to other colonies in the Americas and around the world, according to TMZ.
Steve, his wife Marjorie Bridges, 54, and their children glimpsed the original shackles applied to prisoners, and even tried them on.
Marjorie’s eyes were clouded by tears after bearing witness to the memory of these atrocities.
The slave dungeons lacked windows and were poorly ventilated, and a total lack of sanitation meant the slaves were forced to walk around in human waste, which sickened many.
Male and female slaves were separated into separate dungeons, and the women were often raped by their captors.
Slaves could spend up to three months in the dank, squalid conditions before being shipped away.
Restoration on the site was begun in the 1990s, and it’s now one of Ghana’s top tourism destinations, as well as a popular spot for people of African origin to explore the history of the slave trade.
President Barack Obama and his family famously toured the castle in 2009, the first year of his presidency.
Steve shared a video to his Instagram on Saturday showing his departure from the castle.
‘Leaving out of the Cape Coast Slave Castles there was a group of brothers waiting to meet me… They showed me so much love… Thank you for that welcome back home Soldiers. #TheYearofTheReturn #Ghana,’ he captioned.
The men in the crowd presented him with what appeared to be a large sea shell with a greeting written for him.
He also shared a moving video that captured his visit to the castle and showed the dark interior.
‘This was real pain I felt going back to Ghana’s slave castles,’ he wrote.
‘I could feel my ancestors on me… Powerful beyond words that I can explain. I encourage as many of you as possible to go HOME for your ancestors. Their strength is in each of us and we must honor their ultimate sacrifice in all that we do.’
Last year, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo declared 2019 the Year of Return for people of African descent, encouraging them to visit the nation and even to return to live there full time.
Steve shares three step-children with his wife Marjorie, whom he married in June 2007.
His first marriage was to Marcia Harvey, with whom he shares three children, twin daughters Brandi and Karli and a son Broderick Harvey Jr. The couple were married from 1980 until their divorce in 1994.
He also has a son Wynton with his second wife Mary Shackelford, whom he was married to from 1996-2005.
