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The Virginia Slave Codes
In 1705, Virginia passes legislation and in doing so becomes the first state to pass a definitive code for owning slaves. This code set rules for the time of indentured servants, what punishments were allowed or not allowed, and the hierarchy of what determined a slave. It was this set of laws that said that slaves were merely property. It was revolutionary in the way it was written and really solidified the terrible and unjust treatment of slaves. *1,2 Image -
Stono Rebellion
The Stono Rebellion was an uprising in South Carolina led
by a literate slave named Jemmy. This was significant because it suddenly made the slave owners in this area much more fearful of their slaves. This fear led them to enacting harsher slave codes, and they now realized that their slaves could band together and fight back. This posed a real threat to the slave owners and would be something that would guide slave interaction for years to come. *3 Img. -
An Act for the Better Ordering and Governing of Negroes and Other Slaves
Following on the heels of the Stono Rebellion, the now cautious and scared legislature of South Carolina passed the Slave Code of 1740. This legislation was aimed to prevent another uprising like the one at Stono. It had provisions that banned slaves from gathering, learning to read or write, or even to gown their own food. It also allowed for even harsher punishments if a slave was to break the law. This showed how scared the slave owners were of the slaves. *4 [Image](goo.gl/Fc6nge) -
New York Conspiracy Trials
After the new act and the resulting paranoia, fires began erupting in/near Fort George, New York. Many white people claimed to have heard slaves bragging about setting these fires, and thus raised suspicion that the slaves were planning to revolt. As a form of punishment for this alleged revolt, 17 slaves were hung, and 13 slaves were sent to the stake in response to white fears of the very institution (slavery) they created and defended on a regular basis. *5
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Dunmore's Proclamation
On board a warship off the coast of Virginia, Lord Dunmore made a proclamation of an offer of freedom to indentured servants and slaves if they would escape from their rebel masters and serve the crown with him instead. The purpose of this was to help counter impending attacks and to assist the British in winning the Revolutionary War. However, despite the many slaves that joined Dunmore, the British were still unsuccessful in the Revolutionary War. *6 Image -
The Declaration of Independence
One of the most famous lines in written history, " We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal" is beautiful yet painfully ironic in the context of history. This quote from the Declaration of Independence sounds beautiful. until we realize the lack of truthfulness as we were still a slave holding nation. Slaves were not even viewed as men or people, for if they were they would already have their independence alongside everyone else. *7 Image -
The Three-Fifths Compromise
This was a compromise between the northern and southern states. The free states wanted only free persons to be able to be counted in the population that decided congress. The slave states wanted the slaves to count so they would have added representation even though the slaves could not vote. The compromise was that slaves would only count for 3/5ths of a person. This again showed how slaves were considered less than a white person and still exploited. *8 [Image](goo.gl/DUH16q) -
Naturalization Act
The Naturalization Act of 1798, along with the acts that preceded it in 1790 and 1795, defined what was required for immigrants to become citizens of the United States. One key thing to note here, however, is that they all explicitly called for the person seeking citizenship to be a "Free white person," thus again preventing slaves from being equal and establishing the United States as white mans country where men of color are not equal. *9 [Image](goo.gl/8pukVa) -
The Slave Trade Act
Almost a decade after the Naturalization Act, came along the Slave Trade Act. This act was designed in order to abolish the American involvement in the act of slave trade. After enacted, it would then become illegal to import slaves with the intention to hold, sell, or dispose of a person as a slave. If one was to even build a ship for the purpose of slave trade, they would face a penalty of up to $20,000. *10 Image
