The Coolie Trade Flashcards
What is chattel slavery?
A different word for the African slave trade
When did the African slave trade end in the British empire?
It ended in 1833
When was the Coolie trade?
1830 - 20th century
When did the U.S ban coolie trade?
1862 during civil war
What law was passed in 1875?
Anti-prostitution law against Chinese women
What law was passed in 1882?
Chinese Exclusion Act
What are some effects of bonded labour according to Tapper & Lindner?
Creolization, négritude and hybridity
Who were the Coolies?
Asian migrant workers, mainly from China & India, sharing much of the fate of indentured workers and chattel slaves
What was the result of abolition of black slavery?
The coolie trade reached its peak as a replacement for chattel slavery
What were the state supposed to regulate to allow west indian planters to hire coolies?
They were supposed to regulate all phases of recruitment, transportation and employment
What could happen to liberated black slaves?
They could be forced into indentured servitude
What were some of the reports of coolie in the west indies?
They were hardly decently clothed and suffered severe sickness. Many complained & ran away. They thought they were slaves and even the black pitied them
What was the Chinese imperial courts opinion of the Coolie trade?
They disliked it as there were outrage in southern China against kidnapping & deception which lead to the court requesting assistance from western diplomats to supress the trade
What did the west inidan planters desire and what did London desire?
West Indians planters: demands cheap labour in the colonies
London: demands a legalized and regulated system if migration to protect its international image
Why did pro-slavery southern Americans defend slavery and defy the Coolie trade?
They argued that the economic failings of emancipation and coolieism confirmed the natural order of slavery
Where was the Coolie trade at its worst according to reports?
Cuba
What did American diplomats think of the coolie trade?
They denounced it and wished to ban it. The anti-coolie act was passed in 1862
How where the Coolie officially protected by the government?
They had wages, contracts etc.
What did the media think of the coolie trade?
They disliked it, thought that the government were hypocrits for only baring about chattel slavery
How was the viewpoint of the coolie trade changed over time?
It was first seen as free, but with the civil war coming it was seen as an equivalent to chattel slavery
What were coolies treated in Cuba?
Euqal to African slaves. They were stripped naked for inspection, whipped and had bones brokened
What did the contracts for coolies include?
Payment, duration of work and food
What is unfree recruitment?
Coercieve as well as deceptive recruitment
Is the coolie trade coerced or free?
The boundary between coerced and free is blurry for coolies
Which nations were involved in the coolie trade?
British, Americans, French, Spanish & Portuguese
What was often involved in the “voluntary negotiation process”?
Kidnapping, decay and fraud
How were the vessels the coolie travelled on?
Cramped and inhumane resulting in sickness, misery and death. Much like the vessels for African slaves
What happened socially were the Coolies ended up?
They formed temporary communities. They also triggered a process of creolization
What has the explotation of labour always taken advantage of?
Global inequalities
What was the experiences for coolies in the middle east?
Some were able to save substantial sums during their stay, while others, low-income asians, often ended up in debt-bondage
How many indentured workers were destined for, or transited through, Mauritius?
About half a million were most were from India
Explain Michael Zeuske’s idea of historical continuity of slavery
Abolition appears only as a minor hiatus in a long history of labor exploitation. Capitalism leads to global inequality which leads to labor exploitation
What contributes to massive - alleged “voluntary” - labor migration?
Poverty, the desire for modernity, false promises and the indebtness
Who wrote “Outlawing coolies” and what’s it about?
Moon-Ho Jung: it’s about the life of “coolies” and the changes made over time
Who wrote “Introduction: global variants of bonded labour” and what’s it about?
Oliver Tappe & Ulrike Lindner: it’s about the “coolie” trade
