Skip to main content

Was slavery all about racism?

I do not think that slavery was all about racism. It was also very much about economics. But I think it was far more complicated than two sentences can make clear.  Let me see if I can talk us through this to share my thoughts.

Racism is the perception that those of another race are inferior in some way and should be treated thus.  Those who participated in the slave trade found it easier to enslave Africans because they were of another race, had cultures that superficially seemed inferior to European or American culture, and of course, had few defenses against the invaders. These people were "the other," and as such, there was no need to treat them as fully human, a rationale in their minds for treating them no differently than beasts of burden. If we want to enslave a people and treat them like animals, it seems to salve our consciences to say they are another race, so somehow it doesn't count.  While it is impossible for me to see all of this through the eyes of an early slave trader or plantation owner, I do know it is always easier to demonize people whom we want to use for our own purposes or whom we want to brutalize, so that we can convince ourselves we are still good people.  In general I would say that racism made it easier for white people to enslave Africans than had they wanted to enslave people who looked like them.


However, money is a powerful motivator, and slavery is what built the American South into an agricultural powerhouse in its day.  It is hard to picture this today, but think about how much money a company could make if it didn't have to pay any of its workers!  Even if it had to shelter, clothe, and feed them, it would still come out ahead, if it did as the plantation owners did, spending as little as possible on any of their needs. Free labor is what the plantation owners had, as well as the offspring of slaves, who could be sold or become more free labor, the "interest" on their investment. I would say that had someone discovered a civilization of white people who could have been enslaved, we would still have had slavery, although people's consciences might have troubled them just a little as they deposited all their money in the bank. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is the meaning of "juggling fiends" in Macbeth?

Macbeth is beginning to realize that the three witches have been deceiving him since he first encountered them. Like jugglers, they have kept changing their forecasts in order create confusion. This is particularly apparent when the Second Apparition they raise in Act IV,   Scene 1 tells him that no man of woman born can overcome him in hand-to-hand battle--and then Macbeth finds himself confronted by the one man he has been avoiding out of a... Macbeth is beginning to realize that the three witches have been deceiving him since he first encountered them. Like jugglers, they have kept changing their forecasts in order create confusion. This is particularly apparent when the Second Apparition they raise in Act IV,   Scene 1 tells him that no man of woman born can overcome him in hand-to-hand battle--and then Macbeth finds himself confronted by the one man he has been avoiding out of a sense of guilt, and that man tells him: Despair thy charm. And let the angel whom thou still hast serve...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are some external and internal conflicts that Montag has in Fahrenheit 451?

 Montag, the protagonist of Fahrenheit 451, faces both external and internal conflicts throughout the novel. Some examples of these conflicts are: External Conflicts: Conflict with the society: Montag lives in a society that prohibits books and critical thinking. He faces opposition from the government and the people who enforce this law. Montag struggles to come to terms with the fact that his society is based on censorship and control. Conflict with his wife: Montag's wife, Mildred, is completely absorbed in the shallow and meaningless entertainment provided by the government. Montag's growing dissatisfaction with his marriage adds to his external conflict. Conflict with the fire captain: Montag's superior, Captain Beatty, is the personification of the oppressive regime that Montag is fighting against. Montag's struggle against Beatty represents his external conflict with the government. Internal Conflicts: Conflict with his own beliefs: Montag, at the beginning of th...
Post a Comment
Read more

In A People's History of the United States, why does Howard Zinn feel that Wilson made a flimsy argument for entering World War I?

"War is the health of the state," the radical writer Randolph Bourne said, in the midst of the First World War. Indeed, as the nations of Europe went to war in 1914, the governments flourished, patriotism bloomed, class struggle was stilled, and young men died in frightful numbers on the battlefields-often for a hundred yards of land, a line of trenches. -- Chapter 14, Page 350, A People's History of the United States Howard Zinn outlines his arguments for why World War I was fought in the opening paragraph of Chapter 14 (referenced above). The nationalism that was created by the Great War benefited the elite political and financial leadership of the various countries involved. Socialism, which was gaining momentum in Europe, as was class struggle, took a backseat to mobilizing for war. Zinn believes that World War I was fought for the gain of the industrial capitalists of Europe in a competition for capital and resources. He states that humanity itself was punished by t...
Post a Comment
Read more