The Origin of Slavery in the United States

Anthony Godfrey

6th Period

9/21/16

The Origin of Slavery in the United States

The topic I have chosen to discuss in my essay is how slavery originated in the United States. I chose this topic because I was interested in how slavery came to be in the U.S. Slavery was first brought to the U.S. when European colonists first colonized the New World, they realized the work and farming in the land was very harsh. Black slaves arrived in the New World around the year 1500.

One reason slavery of blacks was started in the United States is that racist stereotypes were widespread even before the English had interaction with Africans. According to an article by Steven Mintz, “One English writer claimed that Negroes were naturally ‘addicted to Treason , Treacherie, Murther, Theft, and Robberie.’” This quotation shows that some Englishmen believed that blacks were going to misbehave and break laws, simply because they were black. There is also plenty of evidence that shows the Europeans had deeply racist ideas against black people. In his article What were the origins of slavery?, Steven Mintz explains that “We know, for example, that Elizabethan Englishmen associated blackness with evil, death, and danger. They portrayed the devil as having black skin…” Steven is explaining that the English believed that blacks were evil, and associated them with the devil himself.

Another reason that slavery started in the United States is the need for economic support from slaves that did not cost any money to hire.