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The vast majority of slaves in history were not black. Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and most civilizations of antiquity had slavery. The term slave is in fact derived from the word Slav (someone of central European descent).
The tie-in of race and slavery goes back to attitudes of Eurocentrism, the belief that European societies represented the pinnacle of civilization. Given that the closest any black civilization (such as Great Zimbabwe) had achieved was probably 5000 years behind the level of advancement of Western civilizatoins, this was seen as proof of "inferiority". Of course, the reason they turned to black slaves was also a result of indigenous population depletions in other areas of the world colonized by Europeans.
Disease had destroyed aboriginal populations in the New World since those populations had no immunity to European diseases. It's estimated that the population of the Caribbean basin was depleted by as much as 98% within a century after the Columbian conquest. Needing populations to replace these losses, Europeans turned to sub-Saharan Africa.
It should also be noted that black slaves were quite often sold to white slavers by black slavers. These slavers captured opposing tribesman and sold them off to white slavers who operated in the area. While some of these slavers didn't realize the nature of servitude they were sending their enemies into, it can not be expected that they were totally ignorant. Nor can it be ignored that even if they were unaware of these conditions, they demonstrated a complete lack of concern for the fate of slaves they sold to be shipped out of Africa.
In all, blame for the evils of slavery is sufficient to extend to all parties, crossing racial borders. It's a sad testiment to the potential for callous and uncaring behavior out of humanity.
Take care,
Jason
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