Racism and slavery in the Atlantic slave trade's origins

Atlantic Slave Trade

Racist or economic?

The Atlantic slave trade took place across the Atlantic Ocean. It took place during the sixteen to the nineteenth century. The majority of the slaves moved during this incident were the black Africans. These Africans were significantly from the continent. The Europeans bought these slaves from the Africans. They then sent the slaves to North and South America (Muhommad). Different perspectives have been presented below (Wiencek).

The racist view

Numerous attempts were made to rationalize the slave trade by its proponents. They hence looked to completely alienate and dehumanize the African race that was misused as slaves. These slaves were labeled the "Black cattle." The African race hence was looked down upon. The traces of this perception are found till date.

In the earlier stages there was no discrimination done by colonial settlers. There was no difference in the genre of work done by any race be it whites, blacks or the Indian. Hence, there was segmentation governed by the racial differences. This however was completely changed due to the sugar plantation and the quick infusion of the huge mob of African slaves in the colonies. It was this that triggered the initiation of work being classified in accordance to racial grounds. This meant that there was specific work that was assigned specifically to the blacks. In previous American societies slaves were sorted and distinguished on the basis of color. However, slaves in America were not like the ones in these previous American societies. The slaves were the black slaves. As a byproduct, it was beginning to be perceived that slave work is solely for the Black Africans. This was later also recognized in American societies. This induction of the slaves of the Americans gave birth to a new perception and new language of the black race. This was simply eccentric and was to survive the eradication of slavery too. The birth of racism had taken place

"Perhaps the most important claim of the abolition movement on behalf of the slave was the simple question: 'Am I not a man and a brother?' The simplicity of that assertion disguises a fundamental issue. Atlantic slavery had hinged on the denial of this claim. The Atlantic slave trade was the beginning of a process which denied humanity to its millions of victims."[footnoteRef:1] [1: http://www.garstangfairtrade.org.uk/slave-trade-fairtrade/racism-slave-trade.html]

This lead to the slave community regarded as a nonliving thing. The slaves were considered to be mere objects that could be bought, sold, acquired or inherited. It is important to realize that the slave community was black. This was the specific community targeted by the Americans as an object of hatred and inferiority (Melville-Myers). All the societies of slaves defined complicated laws to keep the segmentation and segregation of the slave community intact. They virtually limited the ways the Blacks could access the law. The white also did not entertain the concept of the mixture and sustainment of relationships with the Black. The blacks also had very limited rights to own property. On occasions the whites met extreme heights to maintain these reforms and register their own dominance.

"The end results were legal codes and local conventions which secured black humanity a permanent and inherited place at the bottom of the social heap. Nor was this simply a matter of legal practice. Whites everywhere across the Americas internalized this hierarchy, believing in and living out as daily reality the racialism of slavery. Even the oft-repeated abolitionist phrase 'Am I not a man and a brother?' failed to dislodge the widespread allegiance to this radicalized view of mankind"[footnoteRef:2] [2: http://www.garstangfairtrade.org.uk/slave-trade-fairtrade/racism-slave-trade.html]

In a generic view, the many former slaves registered their independence from the Americans which happened in the nineteenth century. In the short-term, however, millions of ex-slaves secured their freedom in the Americas in the 19th century. These people were owners of a sound and insightful picture of the world which brought them to the lowest stature of the society .It cast them aside from under the heading of humanity. This procedure worsened in the later centuries particularly the twentieth. This was triggered by the birth of new social and natural sciences. These sciences further divided the races into categories and hence made matters worse, a consequence of which were numerous theories like Atlantean theory.

Verdict

"David Hume in 1768 wrote: "the negroes (are) naturally inferior to whites. There never was a civilized nation of any complexion than white, nor even any individual eminent either in action or speculation." Hegel noted in his Philosophy of History "it is manifest that want of self-control distinguishes the character of Negroes. This condition is capable of no development or culture, and as we have seen them at this day such have they always been.... At this point we leave part of the world; it has no movement or development to exhibit."[footnoteRef:5] [5: http://www.theperspective.org/2004/feb/racismgreedandeconomics.html]

The above statement makes clear what I stand for. Personally I see the dominance of racism as the driver for the Atlantic slave trade. When scholars can write such racist statements as those given above, there is little room left for discussion. The people in the West hence were singled out as the superior lot and the ones who were blessed to rule the Blacks. The people residing in Africa were pushed to read the American scholars under the heading of "science." The Americans created this perception that the Africans by birth were just simply not smart enough or "civilized" enough. This was the excuse given by the Europeans for using the Africans as slaves. This in every sense is racism. They could have employed any one for their economic pursuit. They however let their racism as equipment for their economy. The people in the West just thought that they should be doing the work of developing and the Africans should follow their lead. This was primarily because they thought that the Africans deserved to do this naturally. The incapability of Africans according to the Americans was innate and there was not anything they could do to change that.

Slavery was hence by any means a paramount juncture in the birth of the concept of racism in the west. Even years after the Atlantic slave trade, the concept of racism is if not alive, then not completely dead either. The ideas have since then been inherited. At the initial glance this may be a story depicting a simple pursuit of economic interest. However, racism is the real driver of Atlantic slave trade.