Slavery and its Lasting Effects Slavery still very much exists in the world today, not in the form as it was during the colonial era, but is noticed by many people. As we’ve gone through many changes due to slavery we see the significant improvements that were made throughout history, such as the Civil Rights Movement. The transition into society today we still see the lasting effects of slavery. The lasting effects show through in racism, racial profiling, and racial discrimination. African Americans were almost always thought of as slaves until they finally reached freedom. Some lasting effects of slavery remain in society today, showing the truth about how bad it was at the time. Slavery began in Jamestown during the 1600s, because of the desire for land and labor to get what the English settlers wanted, which was tobacco (Lacombe, 669). The greed for tobacco led to the slavery of African American people who will do all of the work to get that product for the English settlers. “The turmoil and violence of Jamestown’s beginning, in this telling, were problems that prefigured their solution in the establishment of a regime of racial exclusion and exploitation” (Lacombe, 669). The start of slavery became very violent and everyone began to know their place in society. The transatlantic slave trade took place in the 1850s, which served all needs to the white settlers. “Their actions and opinions indicate that some proponents did see importing African slaves as something that would benefit all whites and not just the elite, and, as a result, protect the overall ‘‘interests’’ of the South” (Gleeson, 279). English settlers began to overuse their
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slaves, and realized that they could be almost the source to happiness among all settlers. The already announced slaveholders did not want to expand slavery into lower class settlers, but to continue as a slaveholder themselves and gain as much power as possible (Gleeson, 280). The
Slave-trade was first thought of as to be “piracy” which is a robbery of some sort, in this case the captivity of slaves. But later was thought of as just a “misdemeanor” which caused confusion to most. Later prohibition came into action which created, “a shield for slave traders’ illegal activities” (Gleeson, 280). Since the prohibition only protected slaveholders, the slaves were still left to suffer under their owners’ power. The Civil War began in 1861 because of the fight against slavery. John Brown, a guerrilla leader, led the fight against slavery to defend the rights of African Americans. “His intended victims were those who upheld slavery even if they were not always slave-owners” (Etcheson, 29). John Brown was a non-supporter of the act of slavery. He fought against whoever even simply supported the act without actually engaging in it. Brown did not resort to violence each time there was a problem, especially if it would not intentionally, but could possibly harm the anti-slavery movement, he stayed away from all dangers (Etcheson. 29). Many people saw John Brown as a very violent man, but he was only defending what he believed was right, and also right for all people. “Biographers and historians who have grappled with Brown recognized his violence but differed on how to interpret it” (Etcheson, 30). It was difficult for people to understand Brown’s ways, but the most important aspect of his violence was that he was protecting the rights of others not just himself. He looked out for the well-being of human nature, taking control of what he knew was wrong doing by the white settlers. Slavery could not
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have been abolished completely if someone hadn’t stepped in and took control of the issue and address it in a way everyone would understand (Etcheson, 30). As Abraham Lincoln had once said, “The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty” (Morel, 213). Americans think of the word liberty as something