Why Did Slavery Exist In America
Thesis
What was slavery in America for blacks? When an individual hears or reads this question, what goes through this persons’ mind? For many, like myself, they immediately think of bad conditions, beatings, ripping people from their homeland and racism. Three major questions come to mind when I think of slavery in America, why did it exist? What was slavery like? And lastly, what did it do to America? Through my personal readings I have come to understand these three questions and the vast answers that follow them.
Why did Slavery Exist in the New World? To say that slavery existed solely because of racism is far beyond the real reasoning. Through my readings, The Peculiar Institution and The African American Odyssey, I have come to the
conclusion from others that slavery existed due to many factors. Slavery existed long before it came to the colonies. The trade of human slaves has been around since the dawn of civilization. The states, however; used that slavery had existed for so long as an excuse for the acts they committed by bonding a human into forced servitude.
In order understand why slavery came to the New World, I needed to understand where it started, and how slaves were transported to a foreign land. West Africa was already in the slave trade business with other countries before the New World was founded, and prisoners of war were they main source. Many of the countries within West Africa have almost always been at war with each other during the expansion of lands. This helped create the fuel line for the slave trade. Portuguese landed in the Guinea Coast in 1441. Antam Goncalvez enslaved a Berber and his servant as a present for a prince. After this, Portuguese used slaves from Africa as servants in Portugal and Spain. The European countries themselves did not enslave others, but rather they bought slaves from other countries. Slavery was brought to the New World mainly by the Atlantic Slave trade from West Africa. Slaves were brought to the South of the New World because it was a better source of labor than paying someone to perform a service. Slaves could perform tasks such as, staying in the sun, or working in a swampland. Not because they were better at the task, but simply because they were forced to do so.
What was Slavery in the New World like?
What was slavery in America for blacks? When an individual hears or reads this question, what goes through this persons’ mind? For many, like myself, they immediately think of bad conditions, beatings, ripping people from their homeland and racism. Three major questions come to mind when I think of slavery in America, why did it exist? What was slavery like? And lastly, what did it do to America? Through my personal readings I have come to understand these three questions and the vast answers that follow them.
Why did Slavery Exist in the New World? To say that slavery existed solely because of racism is far beyond the real reasoning. Through my readings, The Peculiar Institution and The African American Odyssey, I have come to the
conclusion from others that slavery existed due to many factors. Slavery existed long before it came to the colonies. The trade of human slaves has been around since the dawn of civilization. The states, however; used that slavery had existed for so long as an excuse for the acts they committed by bonding a human into forced servitude.
In order understand why slavery came to the New World, I needed to understand where it started, and how slaves were transported to a foreign land. West Africa was already in the slave trade business with other countries before the New World was founded, and prisoners of war were they main source. Many of the countries within West Africa have almost always been at war with each other during the expansion of lands. This helped create the fuel line for the slave trade. Portuguese landed in the Guinea Coast in 1441. Antam Goncalvez enslaved a Berber and his servant as a present for a prince. After this, Portuguese used slaves from Africa as servants in Portugal and Spain. The European countries themselves did not enslave others, but rather they bought slaves from other countries. Slavery was brought to the New World mainly by the Atlantic Slave trade from West Africa. Slaves were brought to the South of the New World because it was a better source of labor than paying someone to perform a service. Slaves could perform tasks such as, staying in the sun, or working in a swampland. Not because they were better at the task, but simply because they were forced to do so.
What was Slavery in the New World like?