The effects and implications of slavery on South America between 1800 and 1865
The difference between the north and the south, between 1800 and 1865 was quite notable with the north having been empowered economically by the high rate of industrialization. It was this economic empowerment that made North America politically stronger than the south that primarily depended on agriculture. History has it that during this period, slavery was the moral fiber of the economy. The masters and landlords of the southern half of the United States relied to a great extent on the free and forced efforts of the slavery institution that was purely a black one. The south depended majorly on such economic crops as tobacco and cotton. Cotton was tended in extensive fields where the slaves worked without pay at all. It was this same institution that saw cotton overtake tobacco become the number one cash crop. The aim of this paper is to explain the various implications of the slave trade on the lives of the people of South America between 1800 and 1865.
The effects and implications of the slave trade during the 65-year period were felt and seen in the political, social, cultural as well as the economic fields. Even so, the effects were felt in the economic field more than any other. Historians have always argued that the economy of America today was shaped and molded by the slave institution. Some have argued that the low caliber residences popularly referred to as the ghetto are depictions of the slavery of the 1800s. One of the most prominent effects of slavery during the 1800s was the rise of rich landlords. The masters enriched themselves at the expense of the poor slaves. The act was immoral, and this resulted in the cropping up of abolitionists movements. These were activities by organized groups of human right activists that bitterly opposed the idea of slavery. Unfortunately, such abolitionists lacked constitutional backing.
The rise of the rich masters was the beginning of the cropping up of social classes. The classes were separated by distinct lines along financial factors as well as social elements such as color. As a result of increased use of slaves, the year-round demand for southern products such as cotton was met by sufficient supply. One of the most prominent socio-political effects of the slave institutions is that slavery became an integral part of political recognition associated with the southerners. Similarly, it became a type of social identity that separated the North Americans from the southerners. Another political effect of the slavery institution is the rise in political forces from the north promoting the rights to own slaves. This was until the thirteenth amendment was enacted. The abolitionist movement also gained power during this period following the support of Abraham Lincoln.
Perhaps one the most prominent socio-political effect of the slavery institution during the early 1860s was the civil uprising. The civil war could be attributed to many political reasons, but the most prominent was slavery. The civil strife was caused massive loss of life and extensive destruction of property. Looking at the institution from the cultural point of view, it can evidently be concluded that the institution of slaves had a hand in religion. The free dark skinned people and the coloreds were united by various Christian faiths such as the African American evangelism church. The churches that were meant to unite the people, who were under similar economic and social circumstances later, grew to be a part of the culture of most southerners especially the blacks. As the war ended in the year 1865, the economy of the south became shaky. The financial stability of the region dwindled, and as a result, the south became subject to political manipulation from the stable north.
