Welcome to my second blog post, this post will talk about race during the colonial period and if its had an effect on the way races are treated currently.
Would you say that the way certain races where treated back in the colonial period effects how races are treated now?In my opinion, yes, races have been effected because of the roles they played in the colonial period.
African americans played a role as slaves, constantly being sold and packaged tightly together with many inhuman treatments. Slaves where often punished harshly deprived of their food, and stolen of their basic human rights.
Native Americas where invaded by colonist, benefiting from trade and new technology but then suffering from the diseases brought by the europeans.
Europeans explore, colonized, had a rapid growth in population, and where able to experience new learning and new technology.
Today, many people seem to think that the roles that where considered normal in the colonial era play a large role in modern day. Caucasians maybe seen as high class because in the colonial period your race often defined your role in society. African Americans, maybe seen as lower class because they were treated unfairly and inhumanly in the colonial period. Lastly Native Americans today maybe seen as middle class because during the colonial period although they did have a role in society it didn't necessarily mean they had a role in the government.
http://www.history.org/almanack/life/classes.cfm
This link summaries the social classes during the colonial period. I believe that this link provides a lot of important information that gives a clearer view on how social classes really where back during the colonial period. It starts off with enslaved field hands this included African American women, children, and men that where brought to America to work (often in tobacco fields) sun up to sun down. This work often included harsh workings conditions and at most their only rest would be Sunday. The second class was ensalved house servants these servants worked but just household work, cooking,cleaning and laundry. Ensalved house servants where also African Americans hired by caucasian european colonist. Higher up in the social ladder they have free blacks the link talks about how the European colonist had little to none free blacks in the population. Free blacks included men, and women but they weren't really free? "Free blacks" where able to own property work and make large contributions to their community but still didn't enjoy the same rights as caucasian citizens. Next comes the farmers, the farmers where able to farm with the labor of their own families and also where able to hire slaves to help. The middling group also known as the middle class included the men and women that worked in trades. Lastly the gentry class this was also seen as the upper class during the colonial period. The gentry class included large landowners, wealthy merchants, and owned many slaves. The gentry class usually included caucasians and no African Americans.
I believe that it shows the way the colonial periods social class, and how the roles where much involved by race. In the link it shows that most servants/slaves where african american and middle class and upper classes was filled with caucasians and not african americans. Although there was a class called free blacks but it did't stick to the wording "free" because they still had limitations and where not granted the same rights caucasians had because of the color of their skin.
