Discuss The Influence Of Slavery On African American Culture

Slavery was a part of the American culture for over two hundred years. African-Americans were not considered equal to whites, thus leading whites to use them for work. Anyone with darker skin than white was used as a slave. Slaves were used from the early 1600s to the late 1800s in the United States. The most common area and most talked about time for enslavement was in the southern part of the United States in the late 1700s and early 1800s when the north portion of America banned slavery. These slaves were used for doing work on farms, housework, or just tending to the needs of their master’s family. During that period of time, slaves developed their own subculture. Subculture is the values and behaviors of a related group that differentiate
Songs were composed by slaves and used for spiritual and secular reasons. They would sing and dance in their slave quarters to distract them from their strenuous and hard-working lives. These slave songs become the roots of gospel, blues and jazz music. Although some slave masters enjoyed hearing their slaves sing and dance and encouraged them, some masters were quite leery of the subject. Some of these types of slave owners would beat their slaves at any sound of music or dancing for fear of an uprising against them. “In 1739 South Carolina went so far as to prohibit the beating of drums for fear that their rhythms would be used to incite rebellions.” (Sambol-Tosco, 2004, par.
They appreciated their families and who they were raised by. Since most slave families were separated when family members were sold to other masters and plantations, they considered the other people they worked with as family even though they were not blood relatives. Due to living in those stressful times, they took whatever support and comfort they could get and give whether it was blood family or not. The slaves that would live at the same plantations together would often give names such as aunt, uncle, nephew, and niece as a symbol of honor and appreciation to them, displaying that they were family. During this time period was the beginning of the practice of giving elders the most respect and appreciation. The elders of the slave families were considered to be the most wise and experienced. Although they found families within their plantation, “many African Americans vowed to find their lost loved ones and, even before the end of slavery, saved money and made plans to find those they had lost.” (Damewood, par.