The Inhumane Use of African Americans During the Colonial Era
In the early 1600’s the inhumane transporting and enslaving of African Americans in the
American colonies began. Although the English settlers required agricultural labor during the
Colonial Era, their use of the African American slaves was unjust. The English did not provide sufficient housing, clothing, or nutrition for the African American slaves, nor did the settlers have any regards for their families. The English also overworked the slaves and gave them brutal and inhumane punishments.
The slaveholders had a, “prevailing attitude . . . to only allot their slaves the bare minimum of food, clothing, and housing,” (The Life of a Slave, n.d.). Anything beyond that was
expected …show more content…
On the other hand, sometimes a slaveholder would choose a Driver to get work out of the slaves, but there is a catch; the Driver is also a slave himself. A slave might have been convinced to do this if the slaveholder bribed the slave with better privileges. Drivers were generally hated by the rest of the slaves, and these feelings frequently led to violence.
All of these things inhumane actions could have been avoided. The English settlers had many, although more costly, alternate options such as paid farmhands. Africans who wished to reside in America could have become indentured servants and pay their way through labor rather than being forced into slavery. In addition, truly equal education could have been provided for the African Americans as it was provided for the whites, if this would have been put into action,
African Americans could have gotten regular minimum wage jobs at worst. If the African
Morris 4
Americans would have been treated the same as the white men, most of these atrocities could have easily been prevented.
In conclusion, although there was a need for extra, hardworking hands in America
In the early 1600’s the inhumane transporting and enslaving of African Americans in the
American colonies began. Although the English settlers required agricultural labor during the
Colonial Era, their use of the African American slaves was unjust. The English did not provide sufficient housing, clothing, or nutrition for the African American slaves, nor did the settlers have any regards for their families. The English also overworked the slaves and gave them brutal and inhumane punishments.
The slaveholders had a, “prevailing attitude . . . to only allot their slaves the bare minimum of food, clothing, and housing,” (The Life of a Slave, n.d.). Anything beyond that was
expected …show more content…
On the other hand, sometimes a slaveholder would choose a Driver to get work out of the slaves, but there is a catch; the Driver is also a slave himself. A slave might have been convinced to do this if the slaveholder bribed the slave with better privileges. Drivers were generally hated by the rest of the slaves, and these feelings frequently led to violence.
All of these things inhumane actions could have been avoided. The English settlers had many, although more costly, alternate options such as paid farmhands. Africans who wished to reside in America could have become indentured servants and pay their way through labor rather than being forced into slavery. In addition, truly equal education could have been provided for the African Americans as it was provided for the whites, if this would have been put into action,
African Americans could have gotten regular minimum wage jobs at worst. If the African
Morris 4
Americans would have been treated the same as the white men, most of these atrocities could have easily been prevented.
In conclusion, although there was a need for extra, hardworking hands in America