Free The Origins Of Colonial Slavery Essay Sample

Question 1

Black slavery had taken root in most of the American colonies and by 1680s they were depended on for the provision of labor in the plantations. The number of white indentured servants fell sharply in Virginia by around 1660s, and this led to the shortage of servants. The law in Virginia colony began to establish connections between race and lifetime slavery due to the shortage of servants that resulted from the low birth rate in England thus making the wages rise. In the seventeenth century, the situation in Virginia became complex as white servants were allowed to marry and even testify against other whites while the blacks were not given such freedom. The laws discriminated against the blacks and prevented interracial marriages and sexual relations between the blacks and other races(Digital History 1). Question 2 The measures taken drew lines between the indentured servants and the slaves in many ways as the status of the indentured servants was improved compared to that of the slaves. White servants were not stripped naked and whipped as was done to their counterparts who were the slaves. The slaves were not also allowed to travel without permission from their masters. Killing an unruly slave was not considered a crime in Virginia. The indentured servants were also given the authority to own property and marry unlike the slaves Question 3 The Quackers never liked the issue of the growing institution of slavery, and they for this reason made many arguments pertaining to that. The Quackers believed that it was worse for men who called themselves Christians to engage in slavery. They also stated that people should be judged based on their conscience and not the color of their skin(The Germantown Protest 1).

Work Cited

"Digital History." Digital History. Web. 5 Feb. 2015. <http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=71>.
"The Germantown Protest (1688)." The Germantown Protest (1688). Web. 5 Feb. 2015. <http://www.yale.edu/glc/aces/germantown.htm>.