AF-AM Slavery: Beginnings Flashcards
What is the most influential slave revolution in history? What resulted in its outcome?
What is the most influential slave revolution in American history? Why is it noteworthy? What did it result in for blacks?
The Haitian Revolution, which resulted in both the birth of Haiti, and inspiration for slaves around the world.
Nat Turners Revolution. It’s noteworthy for driving up tensions between the south and North. The aftermath resulted in unrealistic distrust and targeting toward African Americans.
Until the time of Nat Turner’s revolt, antislavery societies were ____
The most numerous in the South.
What did the American Colonization Society (1817) aim to do? Why? What thwarted this?
They aimed to free America’s slaves and “colonize” them in their ancestral homeland. They wanted to do because they disliked slavery, but also the idea of emancipation.
This was thwarted because by 1830 blacks were being born into slavery faster than slaves were being transported.
What was special about Nat Turner? When and How did he carry out his revolt? For how long?
Nat Turner was marked by prophetic features, and also began to see visions which inspired his rebellion. He could also read.
Turner would assemble a small band of slaves in 1831 to go around freeing slaves and killing masters. The revolt lasted about two days.
What does black folklore describe Nat Turners revolt as, and in turn the Civil War as?
They describe his revolt as “The First War”, and the Civil War as the “Second War”
By 1830, how many blacks were free?
About 319,000.
In many states, free blacks convicted of certain crimes could be ____
legally sold into slavery.
In Virginia, creditors could seize freed slaves and sell them into slavery if ____
Their former owner had debts contracted before the slaves’ liberation.
Most northern states had outlawed ____
the kidnapping and re-enslaving of free blacks.
In areas were legal codes were not inherently racist, white behavior could be as oppressive as law. These oppressive codes were known as ___
black codes.
Some injustices against free blacks came in the form of… (hint, 6)
weapon restrictions, travel restrictions, harsh punishments for verbal/physical assault (even in self defense), inability to testify, restricted or conditional voting rights, and gathering restrictions.
Although black codes prevented gatherings, free blacks were still encouraged to…
embrace Christianity.
Free Blacks, in response to restricted careers, founded their own independent businesses, such as:
adult/children schools, theaters, and fraternal orders (“African Lodge of the Fraternal Order of the Free and Accepted Masons”)
Tensions between northern and southern whites would fester in the 1830s. How did each side view one another?
Despite their differences, both sides had….
- northerners painted southern slave owners as scoundrels who despised blacks.
- Southerners saw “Yankees” as loud, radical abolitionist who worshiped the “almighty dollar”.
Despite this, both sides had their fair share of progressive and conservative populations.
What two things did Southern State codes/laws against slaves/blacks stem from?
That all slaves were property and that independent minded slaves were inefficient.
What were the aims of black codes, aswell as some more examples of their injustices? (3)
The aim was to leverage/protect whites over blacks. Some examples include:
no leaving plantations without permission, no ownership of guns, no contracts, and no property.
- After turners revolt, slaves were ___ (3)
- ___ became more common, and used for a wider list of infractions.
- These infractions were… (6)
- lynched, flogged, and hounded from their homes.
- Whipping
- learning to read, working slowly, stealing, claiming freedom, getting drunk, backtalk, and anything subjectively wrong to the owner.
- Punishments were generally administered by the plantations overseer, a man employed by the owner to see that the slaves worked as hard and efficiently as possible.
- Sometimes, a ____, a form of uncle tom, would assist them. ____ were slaves who ___.
- They acted as ____, and kept slaves from ____.
- “Driver”. Drivers transmitted his leaders orders to other slaves.
- Drivers acted as spies, and kept slaves from idling or doing poor work.
Cotton Plantations:
1. Slaves would rise ____ with only ____ to eat.
- They’d work from _____, doing things like ____ (2).
- Even after ___, slaves had to work. They wouldn’t sleep till _____
- rise before the sun with only cold cornmeal mush to eat.
- They would work till (dawn to dusk), doing things like feeding farm animals and harvesting cotton.
- Even after night though, slaves still had to work. They wouldn’t sleep till 10 P.M.
Cotton Plantations:
1. At night, slaves had to start ____. In-between this process, they’d do different chores.
- What were type of chores did slaves do at night? List specifics (4).
- At the end of cotton season, slaves would turn to ___ (2_).
- Ginning
- Heavy chores like land clearing, water hauling, equipment repair, and chicken killing.
- Harvesting & Corn-shucking.
What is ginning? What does this process specifically do?
Ginning refers to the use of the cotton gin, which is a device that processed large amounts of cotton.
Why were sugar plantations worse? Why was this condition needed?
The hours were longer. This is because sugar mills ran 18-20 hours.
Slave Living Conditions:
- Almost all slaves lived in ____, hosting ____ people, usually their _____.
- Bedding was made of ____, laid over a ___ with a ____.
- Some slave owners were generous and provided _____ (3)
- small log huts or barns, hosting 7-10 people, usually family member.s
- straw or corn husks, laid over a dirt floor with a single blanket.
- gardens, warm clothes, and rudimentary medical service.
Food & Meals
1. The average weekly supply for a slave was _____. (2)
- Sometimes, additions like ____ were given. (4)
- Those who didn’t get much food from their master would _____, and _____ if not.
- Some plantations allowed ____.
- three pounds of salt pork and one peck of flour/cornmeal.
- fruit, sweet potatoes, rice, or corn syrup were given.
- raise crops if allowed, and stole it if not.
- barbeques.
Holidays
1. Some southern states required owners to give slaves ____ off, and ____ could also respite work.
- Most whites also set aside certain times, like ____ as slave holidays.
- These occasions led to opportunities that shaped African-American culture, like ____. (4)
- Sundays, bad weather.
- Christmas
- singing, dancing, outdoor cooking, and storytelling.
Big House Slaves
1. Big house slaves _____. They ____ by themselves.
- They dwelled in or near the ____, living considerably more comfortably than other slaves. They wore better clothes, performed _____, and ate _____ foods.
- Despite this, they faced _____ torment, constantly under the scrutiny of their masters and mistresses, and were often required to be _____ and ____ to encourage the illusion of perfect love and loyalty toward their masters.
- They were always expected to act as if they _____ and genuinely ____ their white superiors.
- saw to the needs of the owner and his family, existed in a class by themselves.
- main house. wore better clothes, performed lighter tasks, and ate tastier foods.
- psychological, submissive & docile.
- enjoyed their work, liked.
