However, European states are largely blamed for the slave trade, because of the large implications it had on Africa. African kingdoms were exploited for slaves in return for weapons, gunpowder and gold, which doesn’t compare to the millions of people that have been forcibly relocated to work as slaves. In the BBC News article by Will Ross, it is stated that “There has also been an impact on African culture”. With the loss of millions of people, African states had slowly lost their ability to gain economic, social and cultural independence, because as soon as slavery was abolished, European states immediately returned to colonise most of the continent. Ghana is a prime example of a country that had to deal with the burden of the slave trade where “the scene in many rural areas appears to have changed little with grass thatched mud-walled huts”, this is inadvertently caused by the transatlantic slave trade.
While traveling to the New World, slaves experienced the blending of different cultures within their own slave community. "When I looked around the ship... and [saw] a multitude of black people of every description chained together." (Document 6) This represents how slaves from differing parts of Africa came together because of slavery. Changed the way they lived by interacting with people from differing regions of the world. This impacted the slave communities culture by changing their cultural constructs.
As the needs of indentured servants increased, the owners believed they were not obliged to commit to the request of their servant. As a result, owners found that buying African Americans into slavery would suffice their working needs. It turned out that African Americans bought into slavery worked harder, which caused higher production rates. Slaves were also renewable and cheap to buy, so if one passed away, owners would just buy another one from the market and continue on with their production. Also as adults died their kids would also take their place as well because the children of slaves were also enslaved, so when they old enough to do and learn the basics of slave labor they would be put to work too.
As a result of the slaves working different jobs, there was a sort of class system between slaves. If a slave worked in the owners house they would normally get better food, be treated better, and sometimes gain better living quarters. These slaves are called domestic slaves and are considered to be “higher” up on the class system. Even though a slave could have a good owner, they might have to face bad living conditions if their owner was unsuccessful. Every slave's life depended on whether their master was poor, nice, successful, fair, and the jobs they gave
Early slavery began largely as an economic institution. Colonists in early America needed labor to produce an economic profit. In the southern colonies, the need was much greater, as the climate and region was much more suited to rice, cotton, and other staple crops that required a large workforce. Slavery still existed in the northern colonies but to a much lesser degree than in the south. Throughout the 1600s and into the 1700s, slavery grew in strength in the colonies, as it was increasingly given legal
Between 1500 and the 1860s it is estimated that over 12 million Africans were abducted from West Africa’s coast and forced to work fertile lands cultivating crops such as sugar, tobacco, rice and cotton which was part of what we know today as the Atlantic Slave Trade. This essay will discuss the main reasons that the Atlantic Slave Trade began, these reasons are; deep-rooted racial attitudes, religious attitudes towards slavery, the legal position on slavery, military needs, the British economy, and the labour shortages in the West Indies. While it can be suggested that the labour shortages were the most important reason in the rise of the Slave Trade, this essay will argue that the deep-rooted racial attitudes towards Africans was the key
Which is about 5% of those transported during the 350-year history of the international slave trade. It’s almost unbelievable the Brazil and the Caribbean each received about nine times as many Africans than America. The labor of enslaved Africans developed in South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and Maryland and later also consisted through of New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Though goal was for Africans to primarily be working on plantations and farms for work in cash crop agriculture, they were also rarely used in mining and servicing the community. They were placed in towns and port cities as domestic servants; and many urban residents performed tasks such as porters, teamsters, and craftsmen.
Slavery’s Role in Modernization As a result of modernization, the rapidly growing industries depend on more manufacturing companies to sustain their needs, even if it means slavery has a major contribution in mass productions. Just like African American slaves from 18th century America (referred as African American slaves here), slaves in modern day Asian countries (referred as slaves in Asia here) suffer from living in horrid conditions that provide a lack of basic human necessities. African American slaves were used to pick cotton and tobacco leaves, whereas Asian slaves are used in manufacturing companies. However, the supplied labor from both types of slaves contributes to the benefit of their superior. Asian slaves are brutally punished
It can be argued that slavery in Latin America was not only more common; but also more brutal. Their lives were short and they were expected to live from five to six years, which was considered a large profit to the slave owners, as they were able to purchase new and healthier slaves with no financial loss. They were also heavily mistreated; being forced to work for hours under the scorching sun, with terrible living conditions and poor nutrition. Slaves were seen as barely human, and the loss of one only meant the loss of the slave owner’s financial gain. Sugar was produced by the masses, but it cost thousands of human lives.
The introduction of slavery to the New World was an important aspect that shaped and influenced American culture to what it is today. The introduction of slaves set up the scene for white superiority and domination amongst American society. Slavery started in 1619, when Africans were brought from Africa over to the New World, through a transport system called the “Middle Passage”, to serve as free labor for tobacco production. African slaves became essential to tobacco production and the economy, as the Native Americans that were previously used as slaves, died off from smallpox and other European diseases. With no other option for free laborers, they looked to Africans.