The Importance Of Slave Society And Society With Slavery

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Ira Butler claims that there are two distinct institutions of slavery: “slave societies” and “societies with slaves”. In slave societies, the labor of slaves serves as the only major means of production for goods. Comparatively a society with slaves is an institution of slavery were slave labor is marginal to the central productive process. Butler states that in societies with slaves slavery is just one form of labor among many. Historically it 's believed that New England fell into the category of a society with slaves however, when analyzing the institutions of African slavery in New England to that of the U.S South, Caribbean, and West Indies its clear that African slavery New England fall into the category of slave society. That said, it is imperative to recognize for a period of time New England could have been considered only a society with slaves
In New England before the 1700’s the most dominant for of non white labor was not African slavery, but the servitude of Native Americans. Under this era New England experienced what Butler describes as a society with slaves. The term servitude is used to classify this form of slavery due to the use of the carceral state as tool for enforcing the labor of Native American. Unlike African chattel slavery, Native Americans were not deemed property but rather criminals. Native Americans would be convicted for petty charges such as debt which resulted expensive fines; however instead of debtors prison, a person could be sentenced