ABSTRACT
This chapter suggests that visitors trust the authentic value of the Slave Route because of its ability to convince. Authenticity is not dependant on accuracy. The Slave Route's authentic value is best explored as a subjective reality, one that takes collective memories and shared cultural realities into account. In addition, to attract tourist monies to Benin, the government began developing strategies to attract international visitors having an interest in Vodun, a major indigenous religion found in southern Benin. Instead, when African American tourists travel to Benin to learn about their ancestral roots, they will probably hear stories and accounts that, while historically inaccurate, thrive in the memories created by local, national, and international agencies. While the inclusion of multiple interpretations of the past make a site's script more "authentic", many Westerners think of authenticity as an objective concept, one that is somehow measurable and indisputable.
