Slavery Question

Slavery in Africa varied in a few ways in comparison to slavery in the New World.

In Africa when tribes would go to war, the losing side would be enslaved to serve the winning tribe. They mostly would be in the fields farming and harvesting crops such as sugar cane, cotton and tobacco. In America however it transformed into a completely different view of ownership based on skin color. Slaves were worth more in America than in England.

There were many types of slavery that initially began in Africa and continued in America as slaves were deported - Chattel Slavery, Debt Bondage, Forced Labor, and Serfdom.

Chattel slavery meant that the slave in question was treated as land or goods, and could be traded. They had no rights and no say in their future, and often had to work hard and perform difficult tasks. Chattel slavery immigrated to the Americas along with the slaves.

Debt Bondage was more relative in the sense that once the debt was paid off in some form of labor, the slave was theoretically allowed to leave -- however these debts usually ended up spanning generations. This kind of peonage grew all the more strict once it reached America

Forced labor was somewhat of a contract in which a person would be threatened in various ways and punished severely at any hint of escape.

Serfdom was slightly more lenient as the tenant farmer was still under the control of the landlord, however with permission could leave the land and marry and change their current occupation and could earn some money by cultivating the owner’s land.

Some of these slaves were shipped were shipped out to America in the early 1600’s to work for households without pay. This kind of slavery was indefinite and usually a slave would be tied to this form of labor for the rest of their lives.

Until the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 slavery was legal in America and very common.