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The History of Colonialism and Slavery
The first European colonies in the New World often exploited indigenous labor as an inhumane means of cutting costs. But, they soon found that indigenous labor was not sustainable, due in large part to diseases from the Old World that wiped out indigenous populations. As such, colonists looked towards another source of forced labor, and the Transatlantic Slave Trade began.
the portion of the Triangular Trade in which Europeans forcibly brought Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas
Fig. 1 - map of the Triangular TradeBeginning as early as the 15th century, Portuguese merchants bought slaves from powerful West African kingdoms and forcibly transferred them across the Atlantic Ocean to colonies such as Brazil in the Americas. The Spanish followed shortly thereafter in the Caribbean, and by the 1670s and 80s, the slave trade was also very active in the British colonies.
The Role of Gender in the Trafficking of Africans
When the Transatlantic Slave Trade first began, slave traders, sought out men far more often than women because slaveholders believed that men would be more capable of the hard agricultural labor their farms demanded. As a result, African men came to the Americas at a disproportionate rate. But with time, slaveholders realized that African women were more readily available and sold at a cheaper price. So, as enslaved men began to take on more specialized work such as blacksmithing and carpentry, women took on fieldwork previously reserved for men. Eventually, women even came to outnumber men in agricultural settings.
Across genders, slaveholders often sought out young adults who would be ready to work immediately.
Fig. 2 - depiction of a slave auction in Virginia
The Role of Gender in Chattel Slavery
The responsibilities of enslaved persons were often divided along gender lines and mirrored the gender roles of European men and women. That is, women more often took on domestic roles, and men more often handled tasks that demanded hard labor. Additionally, it was the men that worked towards developing special skills, rather than the women.
Gendered labor was more prevalent on large plantations where labor structures were more complex.
Chattel Slavery vs African Slavery
Slavery in Africa had existed long before the Portuguese began trafficking Africans across the Atlantic in the 15th century. However, the forms of slavery practiced in Africa were very different than the chattel slavery Africans experienced in the Americas. In Africa, tribes would enslave members of conquered tribes as well as debtors, but they often became free after a certain period of time. Additionally, enslavement was not heritable, and there were restrictions on the treatment of enslaved persons.
In chattel slavery, however, enslaved persons were treated as property, rather than human beings. As such, there were no restrictions on their treatment. Enslaved persons would never see freedom, nor would their children who were born into slavery.
The Role of Gender in Chattel Slavery: The Role of Men
Although women eventually came to outnumber men in agricultural settings, there was still a division of labor among men and women working in the fields. For example, while the women might hoe the fields, the men would plow the fields. And, on large plantations, men were still more likely to serve as field hands than women. The work of field hands included clearing the land as well as planting and harvesting the crops.
The Role of Gender in Chattel Slavery: The Role of Women
Focusing on domestic labor, women performed a number of tasks that would otherwise be the duties of a slaveholder’s wife. For example, they might be responsible for sewing clothes, cooking meals, cleaning the house, and supervising the children. It was also the women that served as midwives.
The Role of Women’s Reproduction in New World Slavery
Once slavery became more common in the Americas, the question of the legal status of enslaved women’s children came into question. The colony of Virginia was the first to introduce the partus sequitur ventrem legal code in 1662, and colonies across the Americas quickly followed. Under this legal code, enslaved women’s children would take on the status of their mothers and become enslaved themselves. As a result, slaveholders greatly encouraged reproduction, knowing it would increase their number of enslaved persons.
Fig. 3 - an enslaved family in Georgia circa 1850
Childbearing was an experience unique to women and had a number of downsides that took away from the profound experience of motherhood. While pregnant women might receive more food and fewer working hours, as soon as they gave birth, they had to return to their jobs, harsh field labor included. Often, other enslaved women raised their children, but if not, women took on the responsibility of motherhood on top of their other tasks.
Enslaved women were also acutely aware of the position their children were born into and went to great lengths to protect them. For example, women were far less likely than men to attempt an escape because they felt the need to remain for their children. Although far rarer, some women even ended their children's lives to spare them a life of enslavement.
Because slaveholders saw the profitability of reproduction, they were not below forcing enslaved women to conceive. This put women at high risk for sexual assault.
Gender and Slavery in the Caribbean vs the British Colonies
The gender-based responsibilities of enslaved men and women were similar across the Americas, from the British colonies to the Caribbean. Something particular to the British colonies, however, were the high rates of reproduction among enslaved persons. It was another reason that slaveholders preferred young adults. It was also a large reason why the British colonies, and then the United States, imported significantly fewer enslaved persons than the Spanish Caribbean.
Fig. 3 - map showing the destinations of enslaved Africans
Slavery and Gender - Key takeaways
- When the Transatlantic Slave Trade first began, slave traders, sought out African men because they believed they would be more capable of hard agricultural labor in the Americas. As a result, African men were taken across the Atlantic Ocean at a disproportionate rate.
- After realizing women were just as capable of field labor (and sold at a lower rate), slaveholders began to prefer women and the gender ratio in the Americas evened out.
- Gender played a large role in the responsibilities of enslaved persons. While men and women might both work in the fields, men were assigned tasks that were more physically demanding.
- On larger plantations, the division of labor among gender lines were more apparent. Men would take on field work, while women handled domestic duties.
- Slaveholders particularly valued young adults because they were able to work immediately and were capable of having children that would be born into slavery. Some slaveholders would force reproduction against the will of enslaved women.
- Bearing a child in slavery was an experience unique to women and came with great hardship and difficult decisions.
References
- Fig. 1 - Triangular Trade Map (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Triangle_trade2.png) by SimonP (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:SimonP) licensed by CC BY SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)
- Fig. 4 - Transatlantic Slave Trade Destinations Map (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:African_Slave_Trade.png) by KuroNekoNiyah (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:KuroNekoNiyah&action=edit&redlink=1) licensed by CC BY SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
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Frequently Asked Questions about Slavery and Gender
How are gender and slavery connected?
Gender played a large role in determining the type of labor an individual would be forced to perform in slavery. Because of this, slaveholders placed a different value on men and women.
What systems did gender create during slavery?
Gender contributed to creating the labor system, by determining its division.
How did male and female slaves differ?
Men and women often performed different duties based on their gender. While both faced a myriad of abuses, women confronted the additional hardship of having children in slavery.
What did female slaves wear?
Enslaved women often wore low quality dresses or slips spun with rough cloth, and they received new clothing yearly or seasonally, depending on the plantation. Women also wore headwraps to protect their hair and preserve an aspect of their cultural heritage.
What traditions did slaves practice?
Enslaved Africans did not have a uniform culture because they came from various and unique societies across Africa. As such, they developed unique cultures upon arriving in the Americas. Music and song were particularly important and contributed to an oral heritage.
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