Defining Characteristic 3:

Money and business were the main reasons for slavery. However, the practice was justified using science and religion.

Introduction

We have already seen the first two characteristics of slavery in the Americas. We learned how European countries and American states enslaved millions of people of African descent. The system of slavery put Europeans at the top of society. Enslaved people had a lower social status because of their race. Enslaved people were considered property.

The third characteristic of slavery presents a contradiction. Countries such as Britain, Brazil, and the United States were proud supporters of freedom, but they used enslaved labor. If they supported freedom, then why did they enslave people? What really made them willing to enslave other human beings?

To understand slavery, we have to understand the difference between motivations and justifications. The motivations for slavery are the reasons why people wanted to use slavery in the first place. The justifications are the beliefs that were used to make slavery legal. Justifications were used to continue this horrible and unfair form of labor for hundreds of years.

What were the motivations for using enslaved labor?

Slavery in the Americas was about money. Its only purpose was to help European members of society make money. In exchange, people of African descent lost their freedom. In this period, wealth was created by selling goods for a profit. For example, if it costs $10 to make a product and you sell the product for $30, you make a profit of $20.

Labor was one major cost of making a product. Slavery helped Europeans spend less on labor. They did not have to pay their workers and they could force the enslaved to work as many hours as possible. As a result, European business owners made a bigger profit.

Enslaved people were forced to work at places such as cotton plantations, mines, and homes throughout the Americas. No matter what work they did, the enslaved were not “employees.” The people they worked for were not their “employers.” Rather, the law considered these people the “owners” of the enslaved, and the enslaved were their “property.” Unlike an employee, enslaved people could not ask for fair pay or seek other work opportunities. Those who owned enslaved people decided the work conditions.

Slavery ended in the Americas in the 1800s. Today, however, we can still see evidence of all the profits it created. For example, most of the profits made using enslaved labor in the Caribbean were sent back to countries in Europe. This money was sometimes used to start other businesses. Other times, the money was used to keep up a rich lifestyle.

Below, the top photo shows the luxurious Harewood House in Leeds, England. Today, it is still celebrated as one of the “Treasure Houses of England.” It was built in the mid-1700s by members of the very rich Lascelles family. The Lascelles made their money using enslaved labor on the sugar plantations in the Caribbean. Compare this image to the artist William Clark’s 1823 painting below. This shows enslaved men, women, and children at work on a Caribbean sugar plantation. Both of these pictures represent the same system of slavery. Consider how these images show two extremes of wealth and poverty.

What were the justifications for using enslaved labor?

The motivations for using enslaved labor were clearly about making money. However, the justifications for enslaving people because of their race were often explained in very different terms. In the 1500s and 1600s, religion was used to justify enslavement. Some supporters of slavery argued that slavery existed in the Bible. Other said it was God’s plan that Africans be enslaved.

In the 1700s, people began using science to explain ideas about race. These ideas were used to justify enslaving African people, but it’s clear that these scientific arguments were built on racist ideas. People used science to argue that people of African descent lacked intelligence. Some doctors even argued that freedom would harm the mental health of enslaved people. None of these claims had any evidence. Scientific research has proven they are untrue.

Conclusions

Today, slavery is illegal in the Americas. Later in this course, we will explore how it became illegal.¹ However, it is important to remember that we still deal with the consequences of slavery in the present day. What are some ways in which the effects of slavery continue today? How can the justifications for slavery be seen in racist ideas and language?

In the present day, it is important to understand and reflect on the historical relationship between racism and economic opportunities. In the past, slavery helped certain groups of people make money. Because of their race, enslaved people were forced to live in poverty. Nowadays, there are often racial differences between rich and poor communities. How might slavery help explain these differences? A better understanding of this troubling past helps us better understand the present. It can help us develop solutions to the social problems we face today.

1 In fact, slavery is illegal in all nations today. However, it is still present, illegally, in many forms and in many places.