Examples Of Political Trends In Slavery

Political trends

Slavery was legal all across the 13 American colonies. Beginning in the late 1660s, the colonists in Maryland and Virginia imposed new laws that deprived blacks. Slaves marriages and family ties were not recognized by the American Law. Owners were free to sell husbands from wives, parents from children, and brothers from sisters. Slaves played an important role in helping themselves gaining their freedom. During the first two years of the Civil War, the federal officials refused to let black soldier join the Union Army. However by early 1863, the number of people who enlisted in the military dropped sharply which led to the enrollment of black troops. The participation of African American in the Civil War “ made it inconceivable

For instance, “ that the Elizabethan English associated blackness with evil, death, and danger. They portrayed the devil as having black skin and associated beauty with fair skin.” Therefore, the European in this early century associate blacks as evil and danger which explained the poorly the treatment they had toward these African slaves. Although slavery was common amongst the American colonies but the black experience in 17th century was quite complex. Some blacks were enslaved permanently while others were treated like white indentured servants. They were allowed to own property, and get marry and were freed after their term is over. As the African settle and start their family in the American colonies, they also developed their distinct culture. For example, the northern slaves, “celebrated a number of popular festivals like Election Day, during which roles between whites and blacks were temporarily reversed.” African American did not convert to Christianity until the religious revival because many planter were afraid that baptism would change the legal’s legal status. However, by 19th century the number of blacks converted to Christianity drastically increased. The the first time in history, slavery was viewed as

Slavery provided the cheap labor in sugar, tobacco, coffee , cocoa and cotton plantations. These cash crops provided tremendous profits for the American colonies. The slavery also stimulated European shipping , manufacturing, and gun making. According the Digital History, “Profits from slave trade were said to run as high as 300 percent”. Slavery also played vital role in the growth of commercial capitalism in the American colonies. “The slave plantations of the West Indies became the largest market for American fish, oats, corn, flour, lumber, peas, beans, hogs, and horses.” Question What was the emancipation proclamation?

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863.

.The Confederacy ignored the warning, and on January 1, Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared all slaves living in states "in rebellion against the United States" to be "thenceforward, and forever free." Slaves living in areas loyal to or under Union control were not affected. The Emancipation Proclamation had little immediate effect, because the Confederacy ignored it. Nevertheless, it gave the Union a great moral purpose and signified that a Union victory would mean the end of slavery.

Timeline

1502- The First Enslaved Africans arrived in New World

1639- Maryland became the first colony to specifically state that baptism as a Christian did not make a slave a free