4.07 Slavery

human trafficking:

slave trading

mulattoes:

people of Spanish and African descent in colonial Spanish America

Mestizos:

people of Spanish and Indian descent in colonial Spanish America

By the Middle Ages, _____________ had replaced much of the slavery throughout Europe.

serfs

Bartolome de Las Casas:

(c. 1474-1566) a Spanish missionary who wrote essays and a book that exposed the harsh treatment of slaves in colonial Spanish America

Olaudah Equiano:

(c. 1745-1797) a former slave who wrote an autobiography that showed the harsh conditions of slavery

As many as __________ people died on the trip alone.

10 million

Sadly, it is estimated that there are _____________ slaves in the world today.

30 million

By 400 BCE, slaves made up over ___________ of Greece's population.

30%

About ___________ are females and _____________ are children. Even with anti-trafficking legislation and modern technology, the legacy of slavery endures.

80% 50%

Modern-Day Slavery

As with slaves in the past, slaves in today's world are often beaten, sexually abused, underfed, and housed in shabby, filthy conditions. About 80% of these slaves are female and about 50% are children. The United States had about 100,000 enslaved persons within its borders in 2010. Mexico supplied 5.3% of the world´s enslaved persons between 2005 and 2007. Some in sub-Saharan Africa earned about $1.6 billion in profits from the labor of enslaved persons in 2005. The European Union has about 120,000 women and children trafficked into member states each year. Russia supplied 13.2% of the world´s enslaved persons between 2005 and 2007. Vietnam supplied 8.9% of the world´s enslaved persons between 2005 and 2007. Indonesia had about 700,000 enslaved children in 2004.

How Did the African Slave Trade Emerge?

As you have learned, Europeans realized that Africans were more resistant to disease and, because of this, better workers on their colonial plantations and mines than Native Americans. To obtain enslaved Africans, European powers started the Atlantic slave trade with domains in West Africa. In the early 1500s, the Spanish and Portuguese began this trade to supply workers for their sugar plantations in the Americas. By the early 1600s, the Netherlands, France, and England also became involved with this trade. These countries made huge profits from the Atlantic slave trade. How were slaves obtained? Africans captured prisoners during wars and sold them to Europeans for rum, clothing, and especially guns. They used these guns to fight wars with neighboring tribes. This trade also benefited the Africans because the Europeans were looking for mostly male slaves. The Africans viewed male slaves as expendable, since they mostly used enslaved women and children. The trading often took place along the coastline because African leaders did not allow Europeans to move inland. The Atlantic slave routes consisted of a triangular trade, which means that the routes made a triangular shape. Two triangular routes dominated. With the first route, ships from Europe sent manufactured goods to West Africa, where they were traded for slaves. Then the slaves were transported to the Caribbean, where they were sold for a huge profit. The traders often used their earnings to buy coffee, tobacco, and sugar, which they shipped back to Europe. The second triangular trade involved New England traders transporting rum and other goods to West Africa, where these goods were traded for slaves. After this, the slaves were shipped to the Caribbean and sold. Then the traders used their earnings to buy sugar and molasses, which they carried back with them to New England and sold to rum producers. The Atlantic slave trade lasted from the early 1500s to the mid-1800s, during which time about 10 million Africans were enslaved. However, because of new crops introduced to Africa that improved diets and health, the slave trade did not reduce the population of this region. Since it involved the forced movement of people, the Atlantic slave trade is considered to be a type of involuntary migration. In contrast, most of the Europeans who came to the Americas freely chose to move for various reasons, such as religious freedom or profit. Because of this, they took part in voluntary migration.

triangular trade:

Atlantic slave trade that had triangular routes

A Spanish priest by the name of _____________ also wrote about the horrors of enslaving Native Americans.

Bartolome de las Casas

Caribbean and North America

Before Europeans arrived, a few Native American tribes practiced slavery. These groups included the Creek, the Comanche, and the fishing societies of the Pacific Northwest. However, after Europeans established colonies in the Caribbean and North America, the number of slaves soared. At first, the sugar plantations in the Caribbean spurred the need for slaves. The Europeans enslaved thousands of Native Americans to work these plantations, but most of them died from European diseases and harsh conditions. Plantation owners realized that black people from Africa were more resistant to disease. As a result, they began to import thousands of enslaved Africans to work their farms. In North America, slaves were also imported from Africa to work plantations that grew cotton, tobacco, rice, and other crops. Other enslaved Africans became house slaves who did chores in the plantation owner's home. In the United States, the slave states had about four million slaves by 1860. Throughout the Caribbean and North America, slaves suffered harsh treatment from their owners. This treatment often involved beatings, shabby living conditions, and long work hours. In addition, in North America, slaves and the children of slaves had no legal rights. A former slave named Olaudah Equiano wrote an autobiography that describes the brutal conditions of slavery and the slave trade. This work became influential in the abolition movement.

How Has Slavery Changed Throughout History?

God created Adam and Eve to model an appropriate human relationship for His glory and for people to submit to one another as individual submitted to God. After the Fall, one of the consequences was that individuals would desire to have dominance over others. That desire of domination has plagued humanity since then. Since ancient times, slavery has been practiced in most regions throughout the world. Scholars believe that slavery most likely started with farming. Why? People gained prisoners by capturing them during war and then decided to use them to help farm their land. These people were forced to do their work and usually were given no pay. The first records of slavery came from Sumeria in Mesopotamia from around 3500 BCE. The practice spread through Southwest Asia and eventually gained a foothold in ancient Greece and, later, ancient Rome. In addition, slavery was practiced in India, China, Meso- and South America, and parts of Africa. Some modern historians take issue with the fact that Scripture does not directly condemn slavery. So, it is relevant to ask what God's view is of this topic. During the Middle Ages, serfdom replaced slavery in much of Europe. As you have already learned, serfdom was just another form of slavery. In the Near East and North Africa, the practice of slavery changed with the introduction of Islam. Muslim practices demanded that slaves who converted had to be freed or allowed to buy their freedom. The Age of Exploration, however, changed how Europeans understood slavery. With the rapidly growing economies in Europe and their colonies, the demand for cheap labor for their plantations and mines increased. Slaves were the logical remedy. The slavery that existed in the American South up until the civil war was one of the last few remanants of the slavery system that emerged as Europeans conquered the world. Many countries made slavery illegal during the 1800s. As a result, few countries today officially allow slavery as a legal activity. Even so, millions of people throughout the world continue to be enslaved and thereby exploited.

What Is Slavery?

Have you ever been ordered to do something that you did not want to do? What did it feel like? What do you think it would feel like to actually be forced to do something? People can be coerced to do things against their will by threats, physical force, and emotional manipulation. Indeed, throughout history, many people have been forced to do work, usually without pay. This condition is called slavery. Slavery is mentioned at various points throughout Scripture. While some wrongfully say that the Bible agrees with the idea of slavery, the truth is that slavery is a result of sin and the prideful attempt of humans to dominate other humans.

Capoeira

Have you ever heard of a sport named capoeira? It is a unique Brazilian martial art that combines music and dance. Slaves from West and Central Africa brought the basic elements of capoeira to Brazil. Over the years, these elements were recombined in the slave community to form a type of self-defense. An important aspect of this self-defense was that it could be disguised as a dance accompanied by music. Eventually, capoeira developed into a sport, in which two opponents compete. The opponents must do various strikes and deflections in time with music. A capoeira musical group often consists of conical drums, tambourine, double bell, and bamboo tube. In the late 1900s, the practice of capoeira spread throughout the world.

Meso-and South America

In Mesoamerica, the Maya often used slaves to carry heavy loads and sacrificed slaves to their gods. The Aztecs had a milder form of slavery, which allowed slaves to buy their freedom fairly easily. However, the Aztec also sacrificed slaves. The Spanish set up a system called encomienda. In this system, the government allowed officials to take care of Indians in certain areas in exchange for labor. The care of Indians was supposed to include looking after their physical and spiritual needs. In practice, however, the Spaniards often exploited the Indians by forcing them to work in farms, ranches, and mines. Indeed, the encomienda often became a system of enslavement. Some encomienda workers were paid salaries. The Spanish monarchs tried to end the encomienda because they did not want Spanish aristocrats to gain too much power. Eventually, the system was replaced by the hacienda system of land ownership, which was better suited to agricultural development than the encomienda. In the Spanish colonies, the Spaniards often had children with Indians and people of African descent. As a result, a colonial class system was created based on race. The people of pure Spanish descent occupied the highest class. Mestizos, people of Spanish and Indian descent, formed the second class, and mulattoes, people of African and Spanish descent, made up the next class. The lowest class consisted of African and Indian slaves. In Meso and South America, slaves also suffered abusive treatment. The Spanish missionary Bartolome de Las Casas wrote several essays and a book that exposed the horrors of slavery in the Spanish colonies. For this work, he became known as "Apostle to the Indians." It can be noted that although he did not support the enslavement of Native Americans, he was not against using those of African descent as slaves.

Africa

In North Africa, ancient Egyptians owned slaves, some of which were killed to accompany their dead masters into the afterlife. In the West African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, about one-third of the population were slaves. However, East Africa had the largest percentage of slaves. For example, the slave population in Zanzibar and Kenya at times each reached about 90%.

Asia

In Southwest Asia, slavery started in Sumeria around 3500 BCE. Before long, it was practiced in Assyria, Babylonia, and Persia. Muslims continued the practice of slavery in this region. For example, in the Ottoman Empire, slaves served as soldiers, sailors, and government administrators. In fact, some scholars believe that the military and administrative slaves formed the power base for the Ottoman ruler. In East Asia, China began to use slavery around 200 BCE. Slaves in this region were acquired through capture in war, slave raiding, and the sale of women and children to fulfill debts. By the 200s CE, Korea had a large slave population. India practiced slavery for hundreds of years, but did not keep records on the numbers of slaves. However, after the British gained control of India, they estimated that India had about nine million slaves in 1841. In addition, slavery was practiced in Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

Europe

In ancient Greece and Rome, slaves did a variety of work, including making crafts, mining, farming, and domestic chores. Both of these civilizations came to depend on slave labor. During the 400s BCE, slaves made up about a third of Athens's population. In ancient Sparta, slaves constituted an integral part of the economy. In Rome, even common people owned slaves. During the Middle Ages, serfs replaced slaves throughout most of Europe. However, in Russia, slavery began around the 800s and continued for hundreds of years. In 1720, the government converted slaves into serfs. Then in 1861, the Czar Alexander II freed the serfs. In Scandinavia, from about 800 to 1050, the Vikings used numerous slaves, which they obtained from raids throughout Europe. After the decline of the Vikings, slavery continued to exist for many years in this region.

Case Study: Human Trafficking

In the early 2000s, the United States recognized the severity of this problem and created a department to deal with it called the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. The United Nations also has a department that combats human trafficking. In addition, the European Union required all member nations to follow the Palermo Protocol, a UN plan that supports anti-trafficking enforcement across borders. Even so, human trafficking continues to be a serious problem in today's world. In 1995, federal agents raided an apartment complex in Los Angeles, where they found 72 enslaved people working in a garment sweatshop. These slaves were females and came from rural communities in Thailand. They were persuaded to come to the United States by an offer of high-paying sewing jobs. Since these women were poor, the offer seemed too good to refuse. After they arrived in the United States, the traffickers took away their passports and told them they had to pay their travel expenses. The slaveholders paid the women around 70 cents per hour, but this money was immediately taken away to pay their debt. The enslaved women worked in a cramped space with machines so close together that a person could barely pass between them. Also, the workspace had no ventilation. The slaves lived in filthy bedrooms that received no sunlight because the windows were covered. Ten women were forced to live in each of these rooms, which were so small that two people would find it crowded. The women lived and worked in these conditions for seven years. After the raid, the government treated the enslaved victims like illegal aliens and, as a result, they were put in prison. Soon human rights groups contested the detention of these former slaves and posted their bail. Once freed, the women found that there was no single group that could handle their medical, legal, and employment needs. To deal with this issue, several human rights groups combined their resources to form CAST—the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking. CAST and other groups pressed U.S. lawmakers to pass legislation that would protect the rights of trafficking victims. In response, the U.S. Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). The purpose of the legislation is to ensure effective punishment of traffickers and to protect trafficking victims. This legislation has increased prosecution of traffickers and has provided victims with a legal framework that will protect their rights. Even so, the number of prosecutions of traffickers remains small compared to the total number of incidents. Recently, federal agencies have reached out to local groups to help fight this problem.

Is That What Slavery Looks Like?

In the triangular slave trade, the route from West Africa to the Caribbean along which enslaved Africans were transported is called the Middle Passage. The captains of the slave ships used two methods to load the slaves: loose packing and tight packing. With the first approach, fewer slaves were loaded onto ships with the hope that such packing would reduce losses resulting from disease and death among their cargo. However, many captains decided to use tight packing, which involved cramming hundreds of slaves into a ship. These captains knew that many slaves would die using this approach. However, they reasoned that such losses were acceptable, since more slaves would make it across using the tight packing method than would make it using the loose packing method. In the commonly-used tight packing method, slaves were wedged together in the hold and chained to low platforms that were stacked in tiers. Each slave occupied a space that was six feet long, three feet high, and sixteen inches wide. In such cramped quarters, a person could neither stand nor turn over, and many died lying in this position. The enslaved captives were fed meager rations of rice, millet, or cornmeal, and quantities were often further reduced to conserve supplies, thereby causing starvation and disease. In the daytime, captains allowed slaves to come on deck for exercise, during which sailors often forced them to "dance" by jumping up and down. Disease, suicide, and mutiny caused the death of about 20 percent of the slaves transported on the Middle Passage. Sailors threw the dead or dying slaves into the ocean, where they became food for sharks. In fact, this practice became so common that schools of sharks often followed slave ships along the voyage from Africa.

Does Slavery Still Exist?

In today's world there are more than 30 million slaves. It seems hard to imagine! Yet slavery can be found in almost every country in the world. In fact, in the United States, there are more than 100,000 slaves, and about 17,000 new victims are transported across U.S. borders each year. The modern slave trade is often referred to as human trafficking. As in years past, today's slaves are forced to do work with no pay. Human trafficking is highly lucrative, and traffickers often make huge profits. How could human trafficking happen? Don't nations have laws that prosecute those who perpetrate slavery? Yes, almost every country in the world views slavery as an illegal activity. Why then is human trafficking difficult to stop? One reason is that modern slaves often seem invisible. The victims are used in everyday surroundings, such as restaurants and construction companies. Because of this, they are inconspicuous and blend in with the surroundings. Also, in some nations, corrupt government officials assist human trafficking. In addition, traffickers use methods to intimidate their victims and, thereby, keep their situation secret. This approach involves choosing victims that are poor or who live in transient communities. The trafficker often uses someone close to a victim's family to get the victim away from his or her community. Then the trafficker takes the victim to an unfamiliar location that has no family connections. If the victim has a passport, it is taken away. After this, the enslaved person is often told that his or her family will be harmed if he or she does not fully cooperate.

A former slave, ___________, wrote an autobiography of the horrible conditions of slavery.

Olaudah Equiano

In Southwest Asia, we can trace slavery back to the ___________ around 3500 BCE.

Sumerians

During the Age of Exploration, black Africans were transported to the Americas from ______________.

West Africa

Slavery has been an issue in world history since early times. Today, we call slavery _________.

human trafficking

Because they did not choose to leave on their own, they are considered to be victims of ____________.

involuntary migration

The route from Africa to the Americas, known as __________, was brutal.

the Middle Passage

Atlantic Slave Trade:

the forced movement of enslaved Africans from Africa to the Americas for profit; it lasted from the early 1500's to the mid-1800's

involuntary migration:

the forced movement of people

voluntary migration:

the movement of people, which involves people who freely choose to move

Middle Passage:

the route taken in the triangular slave trade from West Africa to the Caribbean, which involved the abusive transport or enslaved Africans