Prelim Revision Flashcards
Describe the conditions on the Middle Passage
- Families separates - men, women+children
- Nutrient lacking food - starch based - rice yams sea biscuits - force fed
- Raped - dehumanised - objects of pleasure
- Diseases - malaria, yellow fever
Describe what conditions were like for enslaved people on the Caribbean Plantations
- Owners broke in new slaves - learn new language + new name - dehumanised
- work very long hours - 12hrs
- Subjected to severe discipline, torture, cruelty + sexual abuse - whipped if work too slow
- flimsy huts - draughty + cold Winter
Explain why Britain became involved in the slave trade
- Sugar becoming more desirable - mass market - no longer luxury item
- Many Brit Businessman already had plantations in the Caribbean
- Early attempts of using British workers in the Caribbean were unsuccessful- couldn’t survive the climate
- Shipyards, rope-makers, metal workers, banks, insurance companies gained profits - compete with Spain + France
- Racist attitudes
- African Chiefs eager to trade - wanted money and goods to get rich
Describe the impact of the slave trade on the Caribbean islands
- Population wipeout - Europeans introduced new diseases to natives
- Landscape Changed - cleared for plantations + houses
- Brought wealth - meant economies dependant - Barbados 93% exports sugar
- Demographic shift - native population overtaken by slaves (C18th 80% pop black)
- Social divides between rich whites + poor blacks still haunts Caribbean today
- Segregation
Explain why it was difficult for enslaved people to resist in AFRICA
- No leader - any efforts messy + unorganised
- Severe punishments - flogged, beaten, killed - threat of death too risky
- Guards has weapons - easily overpower + kill
- scared of whites - thot going to eat them
Describe the ways slaves resisted on the Middle Passage
- Jumped overboard - owners lose money
- Attacked sailors with knives
- Threw sailors overboard
- Killed captain - battered captains face to a pulp with their wooden bowls
Explain why it was difficult for enslaved people to resist in the Middle Passage
- Really Weak from hunger + disease
- Enemies has guns
- Shackled
- I have nowhere to go
- Severe punishments
- Too many languages
Describe the ways slaves resisted on the plantations
- Run away
- Keep traditions alive - keep own names in secret - African music
- Pretended to be stupid - broke things
- Kill newborns - deprive owner of another slave
- Tried to kill owner - female cooks poison
- Injured themselves to prohibit working
Explain why it was difficult for enslaved people to resist on the plantations
- Weak from hunger/ disease
- Nowhere to go
- Language Barrier
- Easily identified if escaped (skin colour)
- Severe punishments
- Owners has weapons
Explain why the slave trade was abolished
- Christian groups eg Quakers became vocal
- Role of Wilberforce- regularly intrigued anti slavery motions for 18 yrs
- Former slaves enlightening ppl - Equiano book shocked many ppl
- Publicity - Pamphlets, Articles, Posters to inform - Wedgewood China
- Reports being written - for >100 yrs conditions in Caribbean not improved - shared with public + MPs - upsetting
- British economy was changing - new markets - paid workers in India for less money - economy no longer depended on slave trade
Describe tactics used by Abolitionists
- Wedgewood - China - Upper classes
- Sugar boycott - 1792 400,000
- Petitions - 40 presbyteries 1788-92
- Evidence - Equiano
- Propaganda- pamphlets + posters
- Lectures - James Beattie
Explain why the US closed its doors on immigration
- Nativism - thot imms threatens the way of life they’d established- racist - ruin communities + law & order
- Fear of new religions- white Protestants felt superior to Jews + Catholics - scared they’d overthrow + enforce
- Anger over jobs - imms work for very little - acted as strike breakers
- Fear of disease - thot imms dirty unintelligent + brought diseases like cholera - slightly true - 1918 Spanish Flu
- Fear of government systems - many imms escaping communism but US scared they’d try overthrow current govt and enforce communism
Describe the Jim Crow Laws
- Transported segregated - buses
- Eating places segregated- lunch counters
- Education separate - Black + white schools
- Social places separate - toilets, water fountains, parks
Describe the effects of Jim Crow Laws on blacks in the South
- Etiquette- polite - sir/ma’am
- Discrimination of jobs
- Fear - punishments of laws not adhered to
- Segregation of housing - natural - live with ppl like them self
Describe the activities of the KKK
- Cross burning - terrorise, intimidate - symbolised white supremacy
- Lynching - hang, beat, shoot - no police / courts
- Marched throughly streets - threatening posters - warning ppl to leave town- intimidate
- Arson - burned down black communities, schools + churches