How Enslaved Africans Resisted Slavery - 1696 Words

Enslaved African Americans resisted slavery in a variety of active and passive ways. Day-to-day resistance was the most common form of opposition to slavery. Breaking tools, feigning illness, staging slowdowns, and committing acts of arson and sabotage--all were forms of resistance and expression of slaves alienation from their masters. Forms varied, but the common denominator in all acts of resistance was an attempt to claim some measure of freedom against an institution that defined people fundamentally as property. Perhaps the most common forms of resistance were those that took place in the work environment. After all, slavery was ultimately about coerced labor, and the enslaved struggled daily to define the terms of their work.†¦show more content†¦In the South, the preconditions for successful rebellion did not exist, and tended to bring increased suffering and repression to the slave community. Violent rebellion was rarer and smaller in scale in the American South than in Brazil or the Caribbean, reflecting the relatively small proportion of blacks in the southern population, the low proportion of recent migrants from Africa, and the relatively small size of southern plantations. Compared to the Caribbean, prospects for successful sustained rebellions in the American South were bleak. In Jamaica, slaves outnumbered whites by ten or eleven to one; in the South, a much larger white population was committed to suppressing rebellion. In general, Africans were more likely than slaves born in the New World to participate in outright revolts. Not only did many Africans have combat experience prior to enslavement, but they also had fewer family and community ties that might inhibit violent insurrection. Another common form of slave resistance was theft. Slaves pilfered fruits, vegetables, livestock, tobacco, liquor, and money from their masters. The theft of foodstuffs was especially common and was justified on several grounds. First, slave rations were often woefully inadequate in providing the nutrition and calories necessary to support the daily exertions of plantation labor. Hungry slaves reasoned that the master’s abundance should be shared with those who produced it. Second, slavesShow MoreRelatedAfrican American History During The 19th Century Essay1734 Words   |  7 Pagesdescribe the development of African Americans from the 16th century to the 19th century. They reveal how their status changed to one of complete submission and their lower position codified within the law. However they also reveal how they were able to make a difference and help secure their own freedom. Common themes present in the texts are resistance and creolization. The texts are significant in that they show how African Americans were able to adapt to life in America. 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