Oh damn
The Achdam ( Arabic أخدام, DMG aḫdām , also Akhdam ; singularخادم, DMG ḫādim 'servant', also Chadem , Khadem ; Own nameالمهمشون al-Muhammashūn 'the marginalized') are a population group in Yemen . They differ from the rest of the population by their darker skin color and, as a lower “ caste ”, are restricted to occupations with low status and are subject to discrimination. Their number was officially estimated at around 500,000 in 2004; other estimates put it in 2007 at over one million out of a total population of 22 million.
The origin of the Achdam is not exactly known. The most popular theory is that they are descendants of slaves brought with them from the Aksumite Empire . The Aksumite Empire conquered Yemen about 1500 years ago. These remained after the end of the Ethiopian occupation and were kept as servants or slaves by the local population.
With the revolution of 1962 slavery and hereditary social classes were abolished, but the Achdam remained a de facto separate group from the rest of the population. Today the Achdam live mainly in urban slums - around 100,000 of them in the capital Sanaa , others in Aden , Taizz and other cities - under below-average living conditions.