Slavery the Institution of Slavery

Slavery

The institution of slavery was one of the darkest times in our nation's history. The residue of slavery continues to affect race relations in American society. The purpose of this discussion is to explain how slavery affected American political, economic and social history from the early 1600s through the Reconstruction period after the Civil War. The essay will also conclude by describing the condition of race relations in the U.S. In 1877.

Affects of slavery on the Political, Economic, and social history

As it relates to politics the issue of slavery greatly affected the manner in which the country was governed. During the 1600's and through reconstruction there was a great deal of controversy surrounding slavery and this controversy affected American political, economic, and social history from the early 1600s through the Reconstruction period after the Civil War. In the early 1600's slavery had not yet become a practice that was clearly defined by the laws of the colonies (Boskin). However, it was always evident that Blacks were not seen as equal to Whites within the Virginia colonies. According to Boskin (1976) the fact that blacks were being conceived in different labor terms could be seen in a series of cases which appeared before the court in the early 1640s, a time when blacks constituted less than 2.5% of the population, three hundred souls out of approximately fifteen thousand. The majority of these individuals had been imported into the colony in the preceding decade. Whether the increase in their numbers exacerbated the need to define the status of blacks in general is hard to ascertain. What is clear is the substantial number of cases before the court which dealt with the problem of placing the black man and woman within the social structure (Boskin).

By the 1660's laws were adopted that introduced slavery as a legal practice within the Virginia colonies. The author explains that in 1962 a law was passed that established racial distinctions which solidified the feeling and actions that hade evolved amongst the colonist over time (Boskin). This law was the first step in both establishing and perpetuating the institution of slavery. Throughout the rest of the 1600's and 1700's slavery grew rapidly and expanded throughout the American south. In addition to existing in the south there was also slavery in the North (New England). However, slavery was more common in the south and lasted for a longer period of time.

Throughout slavery there were always those who sought to abolish the institution of slavery. The north abolished slavery in 1804 but the south was always more dependent upon slavery because of the types of crops that were harvested and the agricultural economy that existed in the south. By 1861 the political and economic disagreement concerning the issue of slavery came to a head and the civil war began. During the civil war slaves fought in both the confederate and union armies.

In 1862 and 1863 respectively President Lincoln issued executive orders referred to as the emancipation proclamation. These proclamations basically set slaves in the southern states free.

By 1865 the civil war came to an end and by July of 1865 most slaves were freed.

As it relates to economics, it is important to understand that the establishment and perpetuation of slavery was always about monetary benefit. Slaves provided land owners with access to abundant and free labor. Not having to pay people for labor results in increased profitability. During the 1600's colonist first began to understand the economic benefits associated with slavery and slaves became more valuable than indentured servants (Boskin). The value of slaves increased because slaves could be servants perpetually while indentured servants only had to work for an established amount of time. The primary reason why the civil war took place had to do with the economy of the south and the fear that it could not survive in the absence of slaves. During the civil war and throughout reconstruction the plantations of the south suffered greatly and eventually met their demise. However, some of the wealthiest families in America today have slave labor as the foundation of their wealth. The contribution of American slaves to the building of America's economy has never been fully acknowledged or understood.