Slavery in the New World Q: Why did slavery target Africans in the new world? A: Economics Q: What are the lasting effects of this? A: Today’s continuing Racism (?)

Slavery: a universal human institution Slavery existed in almost all human cultures Prehistoric Ancient Greece and Rome New World (Aztecs and Incas) Amerindian African Middle East BUT

In these other cultures, slavery was almost always a product of “bad luck”. “Anyone” could become a slave. You could be Sold into slavery by poor relatives Captured in war Sentenced for a crime As payment for debts Born into slavery BUT

In the New World, only Africans could be slaves. Why? Originally, Native people and European indentured servants were also “slaves”. Eventually, only Africans were slaves. Why? There was an economic advantage for slave owners to keep African Americans; cheap labour increased personal wealth

BUT The JUSTIFICATIONS for this followed the PRACTICE. In initial contacts between Europeans and Africans, there is no hint of the racism of later centuries. African kingdoms and cultures are praised by European explorers It is only later, when slavery is under attack that, as a justification for keeping them as slaves, negative opinions and theories about Africans are developed

The Slave Trade Developed to feed the need for cheap labour on New World plantations Part of a huge economic system. Why hire workers, when you could buy them?

So, more and more Africans were captured and sent to America where they were packed into inhumane conditions along the way

Slavery disputes eventually culminated in the DRED SCOTT case (1857), when the Supreme Court of the US said “no AFRICAN could ever be a citizen.” Africans eventually were seen as simple, weak, unintelligent, even not human, to justify their status as slaves: These opinions were developed after Africans were already slaves. “Science” was also misused to show Africans were only fit to be slaves.

The Result in American Society Even after slaves were freed at the end of the civil war (1865), many Americans kept the negative views of African Americans In particular, poor whites held onto these ideas because it gave them an advantage over African Americans Racism made the poorest, most ignorant white “better” than any African American Discrimination and segregation of African Americans continued well into the 20th century which eventually led to the civil rights movement

The Novel- To Kill a Mockingbird Racism and discrimination are dominant topics in the novel as it is set in the 1930’s, in the deep south, where racist ideologies were still deeply rooted. While the African Americans presented in the novel are ‘free’, the novel highlights the difference between freedom and equality. Harper Lee explores controversial topics and includes offensive terms throughout her story, but does so in a such a graceful and compassionate manner that her story has earned universal praise.