Bound for America

4 Pages 899 Words

Bound for America
By: Breana Ledesma
Slaves endured many hardships during their capture and upon their forced move to the Americas. Virginia and South Carolina were among the many colonies that brought slaves into their culture and daily lives. However, slaves can be first traced back in the Americas to Mexico, where Africans were being imported in by the Spanish. The concept of an indentured servant is the earliest idea that ties in with slavery.

“ The men who came together and found the independent United States, dedicated to freedom and equality, either held slaves or were willing to hold hands with those who did.” (Morgan 1975) American Slavery, American Freedom set a tone of resentment yet pointed out that slave labor was a major factor in America’s freedom. The first stirrings of racial hatred actually occurred between the settlers and the Indians. Englishmen in Jamestown would throw Indian children into the water and shoot out their brains. It is also suspected that the settlers might have done the same with French and Spanish children. Sir John Hawkins introduced slaves into the colonies. Sir John Hawkins created the routed known as the triangular passage, it was a voyage that took him to Africa to get the slaves, then on to the colonies to trade the slaves for goods, and then to England to sell the goods. Although the English did not take an active part in the slave trade until after 1650, it then became domina!
nt in many areas. In 1745 a British writer said, “ the slave trade was the great pillar and support.” Virginians appeared to fear the slaves would try to leave their servitude for freedom among the Indians. “ In Virginia a master had little reason to treat his servant well in order to obtain a renewal of his services at the expiration of his term: and a servant had little reason to work hard in order to assure being rehired...