It is said that the Africans who came to the British Caribbean between the years 1655- 1807 were

ill-treated and were controlled in any what way possible, what evidence is there to prove this and to what extent do you think this was done? The treatment of slaves will eternally be in the history books of old. From generation to generation it has been told that the whites are better than the blacks. It has been told in a simple formula, whites = better than blacks and sadly most blacks this also. According to the Oxford online dictionary, a slave is a person who is the legal property of another and is forced to obey them. The Africans were treated worst than how the definition makes it seem. African slavery came about because the whites needed a new labour source sadly the Africans were this new labour source. The indentured servants that were present on the island at that time realised that in order to change their way of life they needed to leave. Planters wanted to invest in free labour and they didnt care who it affected and how it affected these persons. They didnt care about the black workers as they did the amount of money there blood and sweat yielded them. They described them as chattel which means a personal possession, as stated in the oxford online dictionary. They labelled them that as though they were their little pet dog at home. People might think that the ill treatment of the slaves started when they reached the plantation but it started from the moment they were captured. The experience of the Middle Passage was a horrific one, the conditions were very terrible. They suffered many things: Their cherished freedom The pain and separation from their family and fellow tribesmen They were in terrible conditions sea sickness, diseases and illness, poor sanitation and ventilation, overcrowding, the horrible stench, hunger, thirst, sexual exploitation of women, punishments. The thought that they would have been eaten by cannibals.

Imagine having to live in your filth for an extended period of time. They were packed like sardines in the ships, sometimes with animals. After this most of the slaves were traumatized some killed themselves or tried to at least. Some didnt have to try and kill themselves they just died not being able to manage this experience or were thrown overboard because they contracted diseases. It is estimated that 1:5 slaves died before leaving West Africa. I mentioned above that the meaning of a slave given by Oxford online dictionary didnt do justice to what the slaves actually went through but that is not surprising that the dictionary is described as The British Premier Dictionary. This is somewhat of a better summary of what the slaves had to go through by Orlando Patterson Slavery is the permanent, violent, and personal domination of nationally alienated and generally

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dishonoured persons. It is first, a form of personal domination. One individual is under the direct power of another or his agent. In practice, this usually entails the power of life and death over the slave. Second, the slave is always an excommunicated person. He more than she, does not belong to the legitimate social or moral community; he has no independent social existence; he exists only through and for the master; he is in other words, nationally alienated. As Aristotle observed, The slave is not on ly the slave of his master; he also belongs entirely to him and has no life or being other than so belonging." the slave is in a perpetual condition of dishonour. What is more, the master, and....his group parasitically gain honour in degrading the slave Some of the ways that the British used to control the slaves was that Slaves who stole animals would be put to death. Slaves could not legally possess property or legally make contracts. Slaves could not be paid for any work that they did. As personal property slaves could be sold in debt or left on the will for someone to inherit. Slaves could not own land; they were allowed a small plot to plant ground provisions on so as to save the planter money that would have been used to import food. They also used other ways such as detribalization. Detribalization was a tactic the slave traders and planters used because they realised that tribalism would give the slaves strength, comfort and courage to the blacks to resist slavery. They knew that if they broke down the tribal ties that slaves would feel lost weak and defenceless. By splitting up tribes and families the planters destroyed communication among the blacks. No rebellions would be planned because there was no trust and friendships would take a long time to develop because of tribal antagonism. The British also had other ways of controlling the slaves Psychologically, Socially, and Culturally. Psychologically, the planters tried to crush the slaves' spirit, but this was not always easy. The Ashanti and Mandingo slaves, for example, were known to be fierce and resistant. They were stripped of their identity, especially the African born slaves who were forced to take the name given to them by their owner. They were stripped of their dignity- made to feel less than a human. Men were not allowed to have any ego. When placed in leadership positions it was of such that the slaves that they were in charge of hated them and saw them as traitors, for example: Slave Drivers. Socially, they dictated what they should eat and when they should eat. Although they built their own huts, they were directed to build one room, one window, one door, and huts with dirt floor- signifying and emphasizing their inferiority. Slaves were not allowed to be educated. Ignorance was a powerful means of control. Their dress was inferior, of poor quality, lacking in style and of course inadequate. It is said that children went naked until about age six. The adults were given two suits of clothing per year. The domestic slaves were often given hand-me-down clothing which they were expected to relish. Culturally, the slaves were not allowed to practice their own religion. Instead, they were forced to acknowledge their owner's religion. They were only allowed to sit at the back of the Anglican/Catholic Churches. Certain aspects of their culture such as their music and dance were seen as vulgar, lewd and uncivilized behaviour. The planters openly scoffed

Shaina Alyssa Thomas of 4W Mrs. Folknore

at them. Other aspects such as drumming were banned on penalty of severe punishment, even death. The planters in colonies with Maroons settlements in particular would have either of communication in a revolt. Despite all of these various methods of control, the slaves resisted the system of slavery. The period of slavery in the Indies is punctuated with acts of resistance as well as bloody violent revolts. The British punished slaves brutally for different things they had done. Sometimes they would punish them just because they didnt do one little thing right, sad but it is so. Some of these included nailing someone to the ground and burning sticks over them. This was mainly used as a scare tactic, so slaves would stay in their place. Another form of punishment is when a man is forced to wear a neck ring which is a metal ring that is attached to your neck that disallowed workers from sitting down. Also heavy weights could be tied on it to make work more tiring. Slaves were very valuable and cost a lot of money. They were called property, not citizens, so they were sold in an auction house. A lot of slave owners felt free to punish their slaves whenever they did the littlest things, such as sweeping the floor wrong. Punishments were whipping (often 50 to 100 lashes), branding, ducking under water, getting put in stocks, slapping, kicking, tarring and feathering, and tying up. Runaway slaves were chased by dogs, and when caught, were hit with paddles or whips or got a body part such as an ear cut off. Some slaves even died from these punishments.

Shaina Alyssa Thomas of 4W Mrs. Folknore

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bristol and Slavery.com Available at http://www.bristolandslavery.4t.com/index.htm May 28, 2013 Yahoo Voices.com Available at http://voices.yahoo.com/slavery-life-sugar-plantation4118797.html May 28, 2013 Wikipedia.org Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_plantations_in_the Caribbean May 28, 2013 BWA Baptists Heritage.org Available at http://www.bwa-baptist-heritage.org/gha_sl_cb.htm May 28, 2013. Library.thinkquest.org http://library.thinkquest.org/5643/sppe.htm May 28, 2013 Wikispaces.com http://cars2301classes.wikispaces.com/file/view/Slave+Control.pdf May 28, 2013

Shaina Alyssa Thomas of 4W Mrs. Folknore