Why Was Slavery Important In The 1600's

Slavery was popular in many other European countries before the 1600’s. After the first settlers established America and started to create a name for themselves, they believed they needed a new form of cheap labor. In 1619, the first ship of slaves arrived and from there started centuries of hard labor and unfair treatment. Slavery brought about many issues including the Missouri Compromise, the Fugitive Slave Law, and the wedge between the North and South leading to the Civil War. A new social class in the South also came with slavery. The planter-aristocrats that owned plantations with 100 slaves or more, small farmers with a handle full of slaves, poor whites who did own any slaves, slaves themselves, and the free blacks they managed to escape slavery. The plantation owners were held high in the South. They had the most influence in politics and social workings. Owners of plantations were the wealthiest of the population in the South and could afford the best schooling for their …show more content…
They made up 3/4 of whites in the South and did not own land or slaves (American Pageant). They believed the plantation owners were “snobby” and did not participate in the market economy, including the the cotton industry. Most poor whites worked with corn and pigs and searched for low-skill jobs. They could not afford schooling and many were sick from malnutrition and other diseases. This lowered their chances of getting jobs or moving up in their social class. Although they did not own slaves they still supported slavery in hopes of one day being able to get their own land and a slave (American Pageant). Poor whites were closer to slaves in their social class standings. They were known as “rednecks” and “hillbillies”, and some slaves even referred to them as “poor white trash”. However, there was a prejudice against blacks. When a poor white man supported slavery he felt better because he was “above”