Slavery In Early America

It is safe to say that not everyone was born into the same circumstances, but it is even worse discerning the truth that some weren’t even born with rights. Imagine being ripped of your self-worth and honor. Just imagine what that does to a person. The history of slavery in the development of early America is such a dire and extremely sensitive subject to talk about, yet a vitally important contribute to the country we have become today. Although it shouldn’t have occurred, we can’t take it back nor should we forget the past. African American’s historical circumstances with the social construct of race and discrimination ultimately outline the way of life for anyone with a color descent. Slavery was one of the most inhumane acts ever installed
Practically everyone treated slaves ruthlessly as an outcast or someone they looked down upon as if they were nobody. As mentioned in The Atlantic Slave Trade, slaves were mere “Individuals who were ultimately held against their will by threat or force. [They did not choose to come to the New World but instead, captured from their villages and were forced into migration]” (Pg.1 Klein). Especially in the Southern culture, slaves were also horribly disciplined, if they did something bad in the eyes’ of their masters. Disciplinary was a reaction to the slaves’ insubordination. Sadly but true, they would often torment and overly abuse slaves. Punishments were sometimes redundant if the masters felt the need to prove their
Each situation being different and bringing about its demands, hazards, and perks. To a degree, the conditions of slave life were predetermined by the status of the slave. The lives of black slaves were under microscopic control by slave codes. In many colonies, slaves could not participate in wage-earning trade or labor. They were denied the right to own any sort of property. The slave's resulting dependence on his or her master for the most necessities: food, shelter and water. Slaves were the personal property of their owners in all South. They had no constitutional rights, no say in the government and they couldn’t leave the plantation without permission. Most slaves were illiterate. Learning to read or write was forbidden. Slave families live crowded cabins called quarters. They were usually bare and simple. The food was adequate but dull; it consisted mainly of molasses, salt pork (bacon) or corn bread. Blacks were practically property. For instance, the state of Louisiana made clear: “The slave master had absolute authority over his human property. He may sell him, dispose of his person, his industry and his labor; [the slave] can do nothing, possess nothing nor acquire anything from his master” (crf-usa.org). In other words, these people were believed to be nothing more than savage beasts that, with training, could bring in tremendous profits with very little money on the part of the owners