A Historical Background of the System of Slavery in Jamestown, Virginia

The system of slavery first developed in the Americas in Jamestown, Virginia in the early 1600’s, The people of Virginia needed the labor of slaves so they could have crops like corn to eat, as well as crops to export for profit such as tobacco. The introduction of slavery to the colonists mightily contributed to the transition of merely struggling to survive harsh winters to the colonies growing and beginning to prosper Soon there was a substantial demand for slaves in the Americas. By 1800 between 10 and 15 million Africans had been brought to the Americas to be slaves. The slave system that emerged in North America differed from that which emerged elsewhere in the Atlantic world because in the colonies the slave plantations were larger. An immense amount of slaves were needed to keep these plantations running.

This is why the demand for slaves in the colonies continued to exponentially growl Whereas in the European countries, slaves would work on smaller properties for the wealthy Human beings are not born racist. Racism is developed based upon human choice, such as being taught a certain race is inferior Racism can also be developed because of historical circumstances, an example being growing up in the south when slavery was legal, Forces that created racism include not understanding another’s cultural, being ignorant, and historical circumstances like slavery. Slaves were considered property and were not thought of as human beings In the past 150 years, humanity has made great strides to end racismt In 1865, slavery ended in the United States.

In the 1960’s a civil rights movement eventually gave African Americans all the rights of a white person in America The choices needed to be made to undo racism have been on display over the past 50 years, which are acceptance, keeping an open mind, and respecting human life These three things were not present during slavery and remain absent to anyone who demonstrates racist behavior today. Although racism may never be completely defeated, if we celebrate diversity and different races we can continue to undo racism.

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The difference between historical forces and human decisions is that historical forces that caused racism were a need for labor to produce crops and goods for the colonists. Slavery was very lucrative for the british and made sense financially, which is another historical force that contributed to racism. On the other hand, human decisions are choices, such as the colonists deciding to force slaves to do their work instead of paying people to do it or doing it themselves A historical force is a choice influenced by the time period, geographic location, and can also involve money, as did the slave trade These forces compel humans to make decisions that they would not have made if there was not an incentive such as money, power, etc.

This further proves that racism is not natural and can be the outcome of a historical force Zinn’s analysis of slavery in America showed how horribly wicked slavery was and went further in-depth showing the inhumane treatment of these African people. The AP textbook‘s account somewhat laid out a justification to own slaves. Racism is a barbaric thing that people are taught, not born with America and the rest of the world have made great strides in ending racism and making all humans equal. We need to continue to fight off racism in order to make sure slavery and racism is not acceptable in society ever again. As a society racism must not be tolerated and different cultures should be celebrated in order for all people to live in harmony together.

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