America in the Early 17th Century - Essay Example

America in the Early 17th Century The America Soil in the beginning of the seventeenth century was under the European Colonial rule, and in that particular period the whites were usually at war with the Native Americans.Europeans had come to America to practise their God fearing beliefs and ro exercise religious freedom, a point utilised even today under the banner of democarcy for conquering mineral rich states. During this period the enslavement of Native Indians, also known as the Indian slavery was common and the Europeans captured the slaves and exported them to sugar islands in the Carribeans. It was the period when slave trade, especially amongst the European colonies, was at it its peak and the Native Americans were exported to all round world and were used to carry out various laborious tasks. These salves were bartered for glass beads, whiskeys and other such lavish goods and then were made to work in fields on tobbacco, sugar and indigo. At that point in time there were no established laws against slavery and hence this was a business that was flourishing and no one had a question to ask. It was not surprising that racial discrimination was common in the world in that period and the assumed superiority of the whites over the colored skin had given them an unlimited power to use them in any way they wished. During this time the colonial America was at a continued war with the Indians and extremely high mortality rates due to diseases and malnutrition meant that the European settlers were in great need of able bodied workers. This need of the Europeans was fulfilled by the Africans whose first crew landed at Jamestown in 1619. This marked the beginning of the Slavery era in America which continued till 1865 until the arrival of the 13th amendment that completely abolished slavery. The initially slavery system comprised of indentured labor, under which the slave was to work for a given period of time until he had paid of his master after which he was freed and was allowed to own land and live a respectable life. It was not until the late 17th century that the indentured labor transformed itself into the brutal racial lifelong slavery. Slavery in the American South 1619-1865 The first traces of Africans in Colonial America were found in 1619 when a Dutch ship had captured 20 enslaved Africans in a battle with a Spanish ship in the Caribbean. The Dutch ship with the enslaved came ashore to Jamestown in the middle of 1619. The ship was severely damaged first by the war and then during a gushing storm that hit its course in the early summer. As stated earlier Europeans were at constant war with the Native Americans in that period as it was still early days for the Europeans in the American islands and they were faced with harsh opposition from the Native Indians. The colony was thus having a tough time and malnutrition and unhygienic atmosphere had given them many life blows and the Europeans were in great need of man power. On the other hand the Dutch had their lives on stake too and they wanted a quick supply of food and repairs to their ship. It was under these circumstances that the African human cargo was traded for food and services. These were the first Africans to America who later replaced the Native Americans and became the premier products of slave trade, something that earned them the title of Black Gold at a point in history. In initial phases the Africans were taken up as indentured servants and treated in the same manner as were the Europeans who had been slaved. These servants were freed after a stated period and were allowed to a live a liberated life and this was one of the reasons why a smaller proportion of Blacks were not enslaved during 1619-1865 as they were these natives and Africans who had served the Europeans as the indentured servants. This method of a limited period service was not to exist for long and in the 1680’s the Africans received a terrible blow when they found out that they will be involved in a lifelong servitude and to make things worse this was to be inherited by their children as well. This marked the beginning of the brutal period of racial based slavery system under which the Africans, by the virtue of their black skin, were deprived all rights of liberty and equality and were treated worse than the animals at the hands of their white masters. African slaves soon became highly prized commodities as they existed in a system that was highly dependant upon manual labor The southern America and its joining areas were warm regions and they needed labor to work in the plantations of rice, cotton and other agricultural products, while others worked on docks, as craftsmen and for various other skilled and non skilled chores. The Africans were skilled individuals unlike the Native Americans hence in the event to capture cheap labor the demand for slaves grew and by the year 1750 there were 0.7 million slaves in the South American region. Europeans had entered America under the curtain of religious beliefs and practiced and it was therefore demanding for them to justify their point of slave trade, as it was a sin for all and beyond the boundaries of all religious scriptures and practices. The early church did no take notice of the fact and look at the practical aspect the society at large was so engrossed in the activity that it was almost impossible to eradicate it all of a sudden. Hence Europeans targeted blacks who were an exclusive group and explained them and being lesser, subhuman and worthy and ordained for servitude. In this context many books were also printed and a propaganda was raised which claimed blacks to have sinned against God and that they have been enslaved as punishment in this world but would be awarded with a mansion in the heaven. All such beliefs were being spread and in the meantime the activity of enslaving and persecution was at its peak. The African population that was seen increasing in number and almost equaling that of whites were deprived of all sorts of freedoms and barbarously beaten up, the violence had grown to the extent that they were not allowed to practice their and neither were they permitted to meet another black. The maltreatment of the poor Africans kept it pace until the American Revolution after which voices were started to be raised against the brutality and selfishness. A number of rebellion attempts were recorded and a number figures of enslaved strata of the society rose voice. Olaudah Equiano alias Gustavus Vassa, Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vessey and Nat Turner are amongst the prominent names of people who fought against slavery but it was not until Abraham Lincoln’s election as the President in 1860 and the Civil War in the following five years that ended the 250 years mental and physical carnage of the blacks. Lincoln thought of slavery as injustice and a bad policy, he was the ambassador of equality who viewed the status of both and slave an sinful and it was due to his efforts that 13th Amendment was ratified in the year 1865 which declared slavery to be illegal throughout the United States and marked an end to era of Injustice. The thought to have reached the end to slavery is superficial and the struggle is still and despite being extremely developed, educated and democratic statistics reveal the enslavement of at least 4 million people even today. Treatment of slaves in the South America Life of slaves in Colonial America was marked by vicious brutality, harshness and inhumane attitude. Lashing, whipping, beating the slaves or even killing was authorized by law and the masters had extreme rights to treat their subjects as they willed, not only the master but each and every person who had any assess to the master to take mistreating of slaves as granted. Whether walking on streets or working on fields the people living as slaves were bound and indemnified to be struck with violence. Slaves were not allowed to practice their religion and nor could they meet other people of their class as their masters feared a rebellion and a conspiracies to rise with these meetings. Worse off were the female slaves who were not only harassed mentally as well as physically, being raped by not only their masters but even the members of the family of their masters, their friends and relatives. Slaves were provided with the basic necessities in the least their masters could and the only bonuses they got were in time of Christmas and New Year. Slave codes had been designed which the master an open right to kill or flog his slave for whatever reason he felt, if ever a slave escaped or runaway they were killed or handicapped on being caught. History has records of only the minimum examples of the cruelty the blacks were subjected to, but this is enough to display dark side of human race plagued by superiority. This plague continues to decay human soul even today and least is being done to eradicate it. Religious Implications and shackles on the slaves Many a thinkers believed that the African endurance against the ugliness of the institution of slavery was mainly due to their irrevocable and immeasurable faith in the power greater than their white masters, a power greater than that which inflicted the pain on the down trodden. It was the religious beliefs of the African Americans which not only helped them survive but even offer resistance that ultimately paid off. Ironically, the whites, who had overpowered the weak and helpless Africans actually their religious strength and this, could be cited as the only reason why they were not allowed to practice not only their native religions but even Christianity. Interestingly enough the concept of God for the two groups of people was analogical to the difference in their complexion. For most Europeans, who brought the Africans to America, religion was neatly placed in a particular category in society while for the African people; God in particular, was at the center of life. Through this centralizing of religion, the peoples of Africa fused their concepts of God and religion into their daily lives and routines, thus giving rise to an incredibly spiritual people. Their spirituality was visible in all the acts of their lives and music served to be one of the greatest forms of their worship and in the later part of their slavery it was a mode for communication. Unfortunately, like everything else in their lives, once the Africans became the property of the white man, they were stripped of the freedom to practice their religions. The slave owners knew that by depriving them of their African names, their African traditions, their religion, their music, their heritage, their entire identity, was a definite way to master over the slaves. The African slaves were not permitted to retain anything that would be reminiscent of their former identity. The spiritual practices of the enslaved Africans have ancestral origins from various parts of Africa, Dahomey, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, the Congo, and other West African nations. These different regions practiced a range of religions, from Voodoo (Vodoun), Akan, Ifa, Orisha, LaReglas de Congo, and Mami Wata. Small percentages were even African Muslims, incorporating ancestral veneration and family deities into their ritual practice (Mamissii “Zogbe`” Vivian Hunter-Hindrew, Hounon Amengansie: 2002). There were even some West Africans who came to America with an extensive history of pre-Christian Talmudic (biblical) ritual knowledge and practice. The slave owners did not allow the Africans to formally group for fear that they would communicate with each other and design an insurrection, hence they were not allowed to gather for religious worship. If they were caught doing so, the slaves were subjected to horrendous torture or sometimes even death. In spite of these fears and hardships forced onto the slaves, the whites could not stop their bondmen from sneaking out in the night and practice their faith in the bushes with their fellow enslaved. In the middle period of the 18th century during the ‘The Great Awakening’ the Christian Church tried to play a role in ameliorating the lives of the slaves. The problems for the whites thus started to increase as they feared that being enlightened by the real faith of Christianity would ultimately lead to the end of their mastery as the religion did not give permission for slavery. Thus even with Missionaries forcing the issue the whites tried their best to keep their slaves away from the weekly sermons and separate speeches were held by their masters in which they emphasized on the points that the slaves should obedient to their masters under all circumstances. Moreover many slaves even avoided attending church sessions due to the left alone feeling in the presence of the whites but those who did captured the words of the white preachers and then passed it on to their enslaved comrades during their secret midnight sessions. As slaves the Africans were stolen of everything that reflected their African identity but still they kept on the struggle and victory finally kissed their feet. Even after the emancipation the African struggle was not over and is not yet over and they still continue to be just another fragment of many societies and comprise of the huge portion of the deprived Third World. Hence it can be said that the master hood of whites may have ended visibly but virtually its strangles over the world economy has kept the blackS and wheatish enslaved even today. Is Master and Slave relationship always marked by Antagonism? The relationship of Master and Slave is marked by antagonism in the majority of the cases, if this relationship is between two human beings. And under the circumstances where safeguard of rights is not available it is almost impossible to avoid antagonism. Only when this relationship is between the Creator and his being is when this relationship free from antagonism, as that relationship is based on will of the subject and he is bound by the bounties of his Lord to whom he thanks. As far as the human-human master-slave relationship is concerned, it is unavoidable no to be antagonist as human by nature wants to dominate those under him. Secondly this is major reason why the religion has not allowed its followers to indulge in slavery as it is clear fact that it will not be free of antagonism. History stands as a proof in front of us that wherever there existed slavery it was not free of maltreatment be it the Jews under Pharoahs or Africans under the Europeans in very rare cases have it been free from harshness. The only ways maltreatment can be avoided is by eliminating this relationship as practiced by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) of Islam and evident from his teachings. Bibliography Gallay, A(2002). The Indian Slave Trade Mason, M. (2006) Slavery and Politics in the Early American Republic. HARRIOT, H.H (1996). VESSELS OF EVIL: AMERICAN SLAVERY AND HOLOCAUST. Higginbotham, A. L Jr,. In the Matter of Color: Race and the American Legal Process: The Colonial Period. Oxford University Press, Kolchin, Peter(1993). American Slavery, 1619-1877 Hill and Wang, Survey Berlin, I. (2003) Generations of Captivity: A History of African American Slaves. Berlin, I.(1998) Many Thousands Gone: The First Two Centuries of Slavery in Martin, J.D (2004) Divided mastery: Slave hiring in the american South Harvard University Press Sylvester, Melvin (February 1998). African-American: A journey from Slavery to Freedom. Retrieved June 20, 2007, from C.W.POST CAMPUS Web site: http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/aaslavry.htm4 Wilberforce, William (2005). what is slavery?. Retrieved June 20, 2007, from FIGHTING SLAVERY TODAY Web site: http://www.anti-slaverysociety.addr.com/slavery2.htm Ali, K (2 February 2004). Islam and Slavery. Retrieved June 20, 2007, from the feminist sexual ethics Project Web site: http://www.brandeis.edu/projects/fse/Pages/islamandslavery.html Robinson, B.A (25 June 2006). Chrisitanity and Slavery. Retrieved June 20, 2007, from Religious Tolerance Web site: http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_slav.htm Read More