The present research explores the aftermath of emancipation in Qatar by analyzing the Bin Jelmood House (BJH), the first museum on slavery in the Middle East, located in Doha. This research underlines the BJH’s claims about slavery and nests them in academic debates. The BJH condemns slavery outright, a position that presupposes a conceptual and terminological understanding of slavery. It approaches slavery in the Gulf through the lens of the Indian Ocean, a conglomerate often contrasted with the transatlantic, the latter comprising of a more benign form of slavery than its racial and plantation-based counterpart. Though the BJH adopts this narrative, it also demonstrates the spike in slave labor due to the global demand for pearls and dates. Islam also appears as an emancipatory force that encouraged manumission, something contested in academic literature. A large segment of the museum discusses the aftermath of slavery in the Gulf, highlighting the process by which formerly enslaved people integrated into society. However, it is virtually silent on the discrimination people of slave ancestry face in the Gulf. The BJH also acknowledges Qatar’s abuse of labor migrants, qualifying Qatar’s kafala system (contractual labor arrangement) as modern-day slavery. This admission is interesting as it concedes to the contested view that labor arrangements in the Gulf are comparable to slavery. The questions that guide my analysis are: what normative claims about slavery does the museum offer? In what context does the museum discuss slavery and how does it draw comparisons to other contexts? How does the BJH depict the role of Islam in slavery? How does it deal with the aftermath of slavery in the Gulf? And, what are the continuities and discontinuities of slavery in the Gulf? The museum has stirred up debate on the framing of slavery and racism. Whereas some view it as a topic that should be kept out of the public, others want the museum to do more. Slavery and racism are becoming more present in the Gulf through literature and media. Although Gulf academics now critically engage the subject from various interdisciplinary approaches, scholarly literature remains scant. My contribution is anthropology. By incorporating interviews, novels, and online debates in my analysis of the BJH, I develop a comprehensive understanding of how Qatar relates to slavery and racism and situate it within broader academic and political debates beyond the Gulf.