Fixing History essay on Slavery based on professor's feedback

Slavery in the US

Slavery in the US began in 1619 before the European settlement in North America when enslaved Africans arrived at the British Colony of Virginia and it officially ended in 1863 (Professor name, Slavery Lecture). Africans were the victims of the slave trade, they were ferried to America, and forced to work for the Europeans for no pay. In rare cases, though, they would be compensated food for their hard work. The American industries and the country’s economy grew drastically due to massive productivity from free labor. Slavery was the main cause of the civil war because the Northern antislavery political forces stood against any Southern attempt to expand slavery to the Western side of the world. This essay will, therefore, explore slavery in US history, explain the origins of slavery and the roles of slavery in causing the civil war.

Slavery originated from Africans being kidnapped from their continent and forced to work in the American colonies where they were overworked in the cotton and tobacco farms for no pay. During this time, the North Americans termed Africans as the most productive people in the agriculture and manufacturing sector with cheap labor as compared to the poor Europeans who worked as indentured servants. In the 18th century, an estimation of between 6 and 7 million Africans had been ferried to America making Africa poor in terms of labor.

Because of the way Africans were forced to work on American farms, many colonists in the North after the American Revolution thought that Africans were being mistreated thus termed slavery as unimportant. This brought conflicts and triggered the birth of civil war because the antislavery side thought slavery would leave a legacy of racism in the world, something that manifested itself after the exercise (Corbett, pg. 86-87). Many of the masters took advantage of African women sexually and did not allow enslaved men and women to marry (Corbett, pg.468). Slaves were not allowed to learn to read and write and their movements were highly restricted.

After the introduction of slavery, African culture and labor were greatly affected and completely changed from 1619 to 1863 when the slave trade ended. Slavery handicapped the African economy since the continent was deprived of the energetic men and women who could transform and revive their dwindling economy. At the time, the American economy grew as a result of free labor from Africans (Corbett, pg.87). African slaves changed their lifestyles from living in a free area to being restricted and forced to work for no pay.

The slaves faced a lot of abuse as their movements were always monitored, they were refused to marry the women with whom they were enslaved together, and the American masters sexually abused the African women (Corbett, pg.397). The social and political stability of Africa was compromised by the continuous exploitation of African culture, human resources, and economies. Professor’s comment- missed chance for primary source Slavery triggered divisions among the Africans by recruiting some of the African malicious masters who oppressed their people in return for small tokens from the Americans. The unity of Africans was lost and this was advantageous to the white man who could use African spies to understand the plans of the slaves.

Slavery played a major role in causing the civil war. The Northern Americans had invested heavily in the various transport systems and other industries, such as banking and insurance, that required trained personnel who could cope easily in the modern world and economy, rather than cheap labor. On the other side, the Southern economy depended mostly on large farms of cotton and tobacco to grow their economy and maintain their living standards so they fully depended on Africans and other slaves for free labor. This fostered an environment that was conducive for a civil war since the Northern Americans did not find any need for slaves, as opposed to Southern Americans. Thus, they began to offer support and campaigned for the end of slavery (Corbett, pg.379).

The succession of leadership in America led to civil war after it was discovered that the Northern American leaders had forgiven the imprisoned slaves and even gave them American citizenship. In the South, the slaveholders were limited to their rights and denied the rights to transport through the territories of Ohio and lower because they refused to let the escaped slaves charged with crime go (Corbett, pg.415 ). The Northern side granted the slaves voting rights which was highly compromised by the Southern side since it could have a greater impact in the succession of leadership. Professor’s comment -I think you can find better examples of conflicts when we get to that point in the class. The differences in treatment of African Americans didn't cause the Civil War

The advantages of slavery in America outweighed the obvious disadvantages but in Africa, it was vice versa since the continent was deprived of their manpower and resources and this led to economic, political and social abuse. To this day, the evidence of the slave trade is apparent from the industries that exploited the African manpower and the mixed Americans who were born after the rape of African women by the white men. The civil war shaped the fate of Africans who had started realizing that they were being mistreated and needed their rights to be respected. Northern Americans stood with the slaves and fought for them until victory was attained in the civil war.

Professor’s feedback on the rubric

Paper has a strong, subjective statement which organizes the body of the paper.

The paper is slightly organized in a cohesive fashion which supports the argument of the paper. May fall short or meander away from the original topic.

Only uses one of the two source types: primary and secondary. Rarely uses sources to support some of their argument. Evidence is often redundant. Quotations might be too long and quote simple ideas/arguments that can be reworded.

Feedback:

no primary sources

Paper demonstrates the author's somewhat understanding of the topic. Able to convey some key points and arguments in their own words and explanations. Might be parroting someone else's ideas.

Only answered two of the four parts of the questions.

Feedback:

Doesn't really talk about specific conflicts or the lives of the slaves

Works Cited

Corbett, P. Scott, et al. U.S. History. Houston: OpenStax College, and OpenStax College

History, 2014. OpenStax. 1 Mar. 2020.

“Lesson 3: Slavery Part 1 Lecture.”