The colonists had to be convinced that this type of labor was superior to what they already had, which began to take root as the immigration of indentured servants slowed as more were choosing to go to other colonies, such as Pennsylvania. Eventually, as the ownership of slaves became more and more appealing to the planters in the Chesapeake region, the colonists needed to find a way to justify their actions. As the English had always viewed outside peoples, such as the Irish and Native Americans, with incredible disdain, they put that view upon the Africans in a way to justify their enslavement of them. While “race” was not a fully-developed concept in the seventeenth century, the English viewed the Africans as being barbaric and inherently inferior, thus justifying their enslavement. So, while racial prejudice was not the sole factor in the rise of slavery in the English colonies, it was very influential once the opportunity for it to exist
The colonists had to be convinced that this type of labor was superior to what they already had, which began to take root as the immigration of indentured servants slowed as more were choosing to go to other colonies, such as Pennsylvania. Eventually, as the ownership of slaves became more and more appealing to the planters in the Chesapeake region, the colonists needed to find a way to justify their actions. As the English had always viewed outside peoples, such as the Irish and Native Americans, with incredible disdain, they put that view upon the Africans in a way to justify their enslavement of them. While “race” was not a fully-developed concept in the seventeenth century, the English viewed the Africans as being barbaric and inherently inferior, thus justifying their enslavement. So, while racial prejudice was not the sole factor in the rise of slavery in the English colonies, it was very influential once the opportunity for it to exist