African American history and life is well understood in 1776 due to the effects that occurred. It was one of the years when Africans went through slavery in the hand of the American which is still remarkable today. Despite the bewilderment, the date is one that bears historical weight. Many have made the fake supposition that, the Africans who were introduced in American represented the start of slavery in what became the United States. It was more likely that we African were “remaindered” captives who had not sold at auction in the Caribbean markets and we were taken by the Dutch traders to Virginia where we were sold on offer as indentured servants (Jacob & Apple, 2000). This was the time when Virginia law began to distinguish the existence of slavery within the colony.
A number of the Africans who came to America as indentured servants made aforementioned arrangements with a master who would pay for their journey along the ocean and then contracted with the servants for a specified period of indenture during which they reimbursed their transportation costs. A number of us, who arrived unexpectedly, became indentured to Virginia masters through a bidding process that was to some extent similar to later slave auctions that would become all in all widespread in the slaveholding region of the United States. According to the law of Virginia, slavery had been established as early as 1640s and many African indentured servants had been variously transitioned into slavery. One of our counterparts was made a servant for life as a punishment for escaping from his master (West & Glaude, 2003).
An individual would also be mistaken to assert that the occurrence of slavery in colonial Virginia symbolized the primary use of practice on soil that later formed the United States. In 1827, American colonization society embarked on a plan to colonize the blacks who were living in Africa. By that time, our stay in America had become unbearable and we tried all means to get us out of the country. However, this was not possible because of fear and most of us were afraid of what would befall us if we decided to run away from our masters. In late 1830s, many fundamentals became “extremes” by turning to instant obliteration and attacking colonization as intrinsically chauvinistic and unrighteous, smith sustained supporting colonization while also flirting with imperialism.
The slavery work included obeying the master’s orders to gain his trust. However, this trust did not lessen the hard burden required of a slave. Every slave had to pummel 4 heaps of corn every nighttime in a barrel (for the poultry) failure to which would lead to a heavy punishment. Many were the times when we were threatened to be sold down the river. Many of us were pressed with fear, beyond self-defense (Jacob & Apple, 2000). This had a psychological effect on the slaves concerned. In intense cases, it was frequent for a slave to commit suicide by jumping into the river and drowning rather than submitting to the myriad disgusts that might be waiting us.
It was exceeding a mere labor system, one forecasted on inflexible discipline. The purpose of slavery depended on rigid discipline and demanded unrestricted compliance by the black slaves to the requests of their white masters. It was also a communal system that repetitively intimidated upon the bondsmen and women their inferiority determined to inculcate them. The American colonization society supposed that blacks were lesser beings who could not survive on their own in the United States (West & Glaude, 2003).
Reference List
- Jacob, M. & Apple, H. (2000). To be continued: an annotated guide to sequels. New York: Greenwood Publishing Group
- West, C. & Glaude, E. S. (2003). African American religious thought: an anthology. Westminster: John Knox Press