Anthony Johnson's Life In Jamestown, Virginia

In the early explorer days the first African American to enter America was Juan Garrido came to Florida with Spanish explorers in 1513. He was free and left a mark on the new world. Garrido helped Ortex take Mexico then he headed for California searching for gold. In 1534 a black man struggled to cross the Texas desert; his name was Esteban The Moor. Esteban was one of four explorers who survived a Spanish expedition that went horribly wrong. Esteban and Garrido were the first African Americans in our country. Which they found hope and opportunity here. In 1619 Jamestown, Virginia the first British colony became the United States. On one night in august a shipped appeared, and it was carrying slaves. That’s how slavery started. Plantations

Despite his skin color, Johnson found a lot of opportunities in Jamestown. He worked side by side with his owner. In order for his owner to survive, he needed Anthony Johnson to make farms, especially in this type of environment. He earned his way to his own freedom. His owner gave him a start up by giving him some land. He became one of the first property owners and slaveholders of African birth there. But as Johnson prospered so did Virginia. Within decades Jamestown has become the center of a booming tobacco economy that was desperate for labor. After Johnson died, a court ruled that he was called a “negro” and an “alien.” Then the colony of Virginia seized his family land. Johnson story marked a new era in the British colonies. From this day slavery will be solely based on race. By the time Johnson arrived in Jamestown by the early 1620s more than half a million enslaved African slaves were spread across the new world; into Brazil, Mexico, and the

When the slave dies it will not count as a felony, but the master will be acquitted from molestation.

Olaudah Equiano When Olaudah first woke up the first thing he saw was a slave ship on an anchor. At first he was amazed, then he it became fear as he was carried on board. He was persuaded that he was in a world of evil spirits that would kill him or “eat him”, their white complexion and hair confirmed his fear. The blacks brought him onboard, then left him abandoned. He became sick and lost his appetite in food and taste. He became suicidal waiting for death. He refused to eat and two white men tied him up and beat him. If you did not eat Africans were cut and hourly whipped, including himself. Little after did he know he was carried to the “white people’s country” to work for them. He hasn’t seen such cruelty towards blacks, but also some whites. When he was there he couldn’t hide the fact that he was scared. He thought the white people had a special spell to put in the water to stop the vessel. He was amazed and thought they were spirits. Olaudah wished to be freed, but of course that wasn’t going to happen. He then realized it was impossible for any of them to