Derek R. Kinder
Hum2020
Mirta Zidovec
November 27, 2016
Evolution in Slavery
Slavery is one of the oldest practices in this World. It has been around since anyone can
remember. Whether it was the egyptians forcing the jews to build pyramids, the romans
enslaving their conquered or like the famous slave trade in the 16-19th century. It has been
around forever, and despite past events set forward to prevent slavery it still exists to this day.
Slaves didn’t have an easy life and struggled everyday. Even those who fought and gained
freedom in the English colonies still had hard roads ahead.
Upon the arrival of Europeans in Latin America the natives didn’t know how to react.
Many welcomed with open arms, other stood their ground against these mighty crowns. Either
way the new world was being built and it needed workers. The europeans conquered the natives
lands and put the conquered to work, just like the Roman Empire, forcing them into labor.
Although there were laws set forth by the crown stating that the natives must be paid wages and
taught the spanish language, many encomenderos failed to follow this guideline. After the
decline of Natives though due to disease and a lot of killing the European colonies in Latin
America began to import slaves from Africa as well, thus joining the slave trade. If we look
towards the English colonies up in North America we see some of the same events occurring.
The English set its colonies and needed workers to help fuel the economy. Although the English
did it quite differently. The English imported slaves. They shipped African slaves from Europe &
Africa to the New World to work on farms and help colonists. According to
NationalGeographic.org the first slaves were shipped to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 to work on
tobacco farms. The slaves in the English colonies got no rights at all, they were seen as property
in place of a human. There were no laws set for slaves until the three-fifths law, and that didn’t
benefit the slaves, it benefited the owners by giving that state more voting power to help keep
slavery! Some states made manumission, freeing one’s slaves, even more difficult. States made it
more expensive to free your slaves than if you were to just keep them. Don’t get me wrong each
state had its slave codes, but these did very little and were ignored.
The triangle trade lasted from 1562 to around 1807, even though ships still sailed after
