No, Slaves Didn't Build This Country

The resident righties taking DeSantis’s lead on AA history..

 

Slavery was recognized as being wrong (as in, immoral) at the time, by the people who had the power to make it illegal. Both Washington and Jefferson recognized that slavery was wrong, but they made too much money from their plantations to give up their slaves. They admitted it. Of course, had they made it illegal, they would have had a fight on their hands with all of the other slave owners. But the first step would have been giving up their own slaves, which neither one did while they were alive.

 

Its a figure of speech... Like saying Pell and Hall built the foundation for Spurrier.

Spurrier built Florida into what it is known for today, but history knows there was impact from others.

Slaves did not literally build America, but the figure of speech makes sense and honors them in an appropriate way in my opinion.

 

I dont know about the whole US but they did help build the White House.

Did enslaved people build the White House? - White House Historical Association (whitehousehistory.org)


A slave coffle passing the Capitol grounds, 1815, published in A Popular History of the United States, 1876.

Library of Congress

 

Ok, should we say that slaves and also cheap exploited labor built this country?

 

Bingo!

It's arguing semantics without acknowledging the pragmatics. It is a tactic we see here over and over again by those trying to justify otherwise reprehensible positions. It reminds me of the "All Lives Matter" response to "Black Lives Matter" that attempts to distract from concerns of systemic, disproportional violence against the black community.

Also, as @saywhatgator pointed out, this is just a horrible strawman. Who said the slaves built this country and what was 'their' point? What did 'they' mean by 'built'? The OP is arguing against a person that doesn't exist and cannot defend himself.

 

C'mon, you know why

 

There may be one, but I don't understand the ultimate point you're trying to make. Does it matter whether we enslaved them given that, a minimum, we kept them enslaved?

 

We can't let those damn wokes give the slaves more credit than they deserve!

 

Also, the Europeans initially enslaved the Indians and only turned to African labor when they basically wiped out the natives. So they basically did do the conquest and capturing of free people before they turned to another labor source due to market demand!

 

By this logic, only slaves came to America. No free people were enslaved. But we know from historical records that this is false. Do you really think white slavers distinguished free black people from slaves?

“If the Confederacy had been a separate nation, it would have ranked as the fourth richest in the world at the start of the Civil War. The slave economy had been very good to American prosperity. By the start of the war, the South was producing 75 percent of the world’s cotton and creating more millionaires per capita in the Mississippi River valley than anywhere in the nation.”

Today Mississippi is the poorest, dumbest state in the union. Did all the brilliant folks beget morons? No, their wealth was built on cruel enslavement, and when that ended their economy tanked.

Further, while “slavery” in west Africa was common, it often resembled fuedal Europe. Slavery before the Trans-Atlantic Trade · African Passages, Lowcountry Adaptations · Lowcountry Digital History Initiative. People lived/worked on land owned by local leaders. Servitude and slavery are not the same.

But ultimately you seem to excuse (is that really your point) slavery because “they did it too.” They killed each other in wars, so if we kill them in a war attacking them, they were gonna die? That is your logic!

This ignores that England and much of Europe outlawed slavery earlier. As early as 1776, the House of Commons debated a motion 'that the slave trade is contrary to the laws of God and the rights of men' and it was abolished in 1807 by royal decree.

In summary, the early US southern economy and wealth (yes, of the few and white males) were built on slavery and denying that is lying. Almost every southern state that left the union in the civil war SPECIFICALLY cited slavery as the reason for their treason. Denying that literally means you cannot read. But justifying annd explaining away slavery because “they did it too” harkens to all the excuses southerners traditionally used for discrimination: blacks were uncivilized, lesser, etc. A war had to be fought against people who excuse rape, enslavement and degradation of people. There is no explanation other than evilness and greed.

 

Pretty much. There’s a reason why that contingent is hellbent on stymieing history lessons in school, they want to rewrite it in their favor before they all pass away.

 

Yeah they pretty much did, and hate, fear, bigotry, antisemitism, and racism has held this country back.

 

The post i replied to said they were "brought here and enslaved"--i was simply pointing out that they were already enslaved.

That doesn't exonerate or excuse the institution, but I think it does mitigate to some extent, and as I pointed out in my next post, especially when juxtaposed against what our nation did to the native Americans, and on particular, in context or reparations (the endgame of the 1619 project, which was likely the impetus of the OP).

TBL, IF anyone can state a case for reparations against the United States, it's the native Americans.

The descendants of African slaves maybe could state a case against the tribes that enslaved their ancestors, against the slaveholders who benefitted from their ancestors (assuming thet could be identified, and isolated from the nonculpable...), but the case against the entity--the USA--that shed blood to free them? Quite dubious, and definitely subordinate to any such relief due the native Americans.

Ultimately, it's a counterproductive exercise in futility, that oughtn't be permitted to gain traction, imho.

Jmho/fwiw

 

I’ll give you Franklin, Hamilton to a lesser extent. He was talking about Virginians.

 

Europeans enslaved them in perpetuity. African slavery was just war captives put to work or domestic service temporarily, not full blown chattel slavery, their kids didn't become slaves by virtue of birth as the property of others. European demand basically created a war economy in Africa based on capturing people to sell to Europeans, where previously it wasnt some kind of lucrative industry, just something that happened as consequence of small scale conflict.

 

You mean unity, and moving forward? Wasn't that ultimately why the civil war was waged? To preserve the Union?

Seems those hellbent on reopening the wounds of yesteryear are the ones seeking to 'stymie' history--by rewriting it, and reliving it, rather than making new history be moving forward.

I thought y'all fashioned yourselves 'progressive '.

Sounds quite Regressive to me.

 

I think part of the issue is the lefts terrible messaging
Black Lives Matter - came out during marches and protest against police where individuals in BLM gear where filmed shouting die pigs - people immediately pushed back
Defund the police - many here claimed that. Really didn’t mean defund the police… but people are going to push back on that…
Slaves Built America - only place I’ve seen it is in a kids cartoon ad… and again, it isn’t great messaging … of course people will push back on it.

These three examples show that even though the “good Brent” might be honorable when you package it and brand in a way that is a firebrand… you can expect push back.
In this case, a kids carton making this claim would definitely get peoples attention.
Slavery is the darkest most horrible part of countries past. There is no ignoring it or sugar coating it. But many act like USA is the only nation with such a past. That white people are the only ones to blame. That great strides have not been made in the last 60-70 years.
I cannot change what happened. I’m not responsible for what happened. All I can control is how I live pray. And that is truly all anyone can control.
Revisionist history will not help
Removing history will not help
Replaying history will not help.
Learning from it, improving from it, moving forward from it is all hat will help.

 

Well then that is ok I guess…