The scar of slavery on the American perspective.

(Synopsis-the reason for the fear of violent slave uprisings, violent black uprisings and the continued racism is because white Americans know exactly how they would react if the roles were reversed)

“Any understanding or the American perspective must be rooted, and I do mean rooted in an understanding of the Civil War”

Shelby Foot -Civil War Historian

The evidence for the scar slavery has left on our society is painted across our entire country. It permeates every facet of our culture because it changes both the slave and master classes in ways that don’t change over night... or over the century.

There are bugs that inherently come with the feature that is slavery, and has for any culture who has ever practiced slavery to a significant degree.

All the “Great Slave Societies” carried these bugs so deeply they could easily be confused with features.

See if you only allow a tiny fraction of your society to be comprised of slaves they become extremely valuable oddities. There is no real need for overly brutal security. Only the wealthiest of the wealthy have enough money for a slave and those who do use them as status symbols. Quite often the slaves lot in life was far better than the free peasants of the area. Imagine how well some AKC championship quality dogs have things..

But the second you allow a significant enough percentage of the population to be enslaved that dynamic shifts. The higher the population of slaves rises the more brutality that is required to protect against violent uprisings and the more affordable/replaceable they become.

Just Look at Haiti or Sparta where they allowed the slave class to outnumber the master class 10-1. It requires a society BUILT around the feature of slavery to maintain security.

There is one bug from slavery that has been present in every major slave society in history. A PRIMAL fear of a violent slave uprising.

A fear of violent uprisings the ends up saturating every feature of that society and it is not an irrational fear.. It is a well founded fear because obviously people don’t like being enslaved..

If you scroll through history that fear saturated the politics of the time and still does.. even to this day you see people and politicians race bait a fear of violent black uprisings.

But along with that fear comes a bug that puts that fear on steroids..

The knowledge of how white Americans would react if the situation was reversed..

We know that if we had been enslaved/discriminated against that recently we wouldn’t turn the other cheek.. we wouldn’t forgive and forget and move on..

Just like in pre-civil war America they knew that if the roles were reversed and they had the option we would have slaughtered every man woman and child from whatever faction had us enslaved.

I think that is the real basis for the fear of violent uprisings and the accompanying racism...

We know exactly what we would do in that situation..

The content of what you wrote makes absolutely no sense, but I applaud you for writing a lot of words.

originally posted by: JoshuaCox
If you scroll through history that fear saturated the politics of the time and still does.. even to this day you see people and politicians race bait a fear of violent black uprisings.

And if you look at politics with an objective eye, you notice that race baiting a fear of (insert skin color here) comes from mouths of many politicians, and the race isn't always "black" as the subject of the fabricated fear.

But along with that fear comes a bug that puts that fear on steroids..

The knowledge of how white Americans would react if the situation was reversed..

We know that if we had been enslaved/discriminated against that recently we wouldn’t turn the other cheek.. we wouldn’t forgive and forget and move on..

What an ignorant approach to take. Not a single black/brown/white/purple/green individual alive in the United States of America right now was ever a slave (legally, at least...we can argue illegal issues another time). Many white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, and any other descriptor of people can trace their family histories back to a point where they may have been slaves to someone else. Hell, black people can trace their own history back to black Africans that sold their ancestors into slavery in the first place.

An intelligent human being doesn't need to forgive and forget the enslavement and transgression of people of long ago. Hell, I don't even need to forgive and forget anything that my parents did, and they're still alive--because they are not me and I am not them. I'm not excusing the way that black people have historically been treated since emancipation, but to pretend that anyone has direct ties to being a slave and must forgive and forget is downright absurd.


We are responsible for our own actions and no one else's. Period. I will not succumb to white guilt, nor will I be bullied into it by ideologically driven people on the internet.

Just like in pre-civil war America they knew that if the roles were reversed and they had the option we would have slaughtered every man woman and child from whatever faction had us enslaved.

I think that is the real basis for the fear of violent uprisings and the accompanying racism...

We know exactly what we would do in that situation..

You know what you THINK you would do in that situation, but you have no clue. Physical, mental, emotional, and sexual abuse rob people of their will to fight. Lack of education results in people not knowing what they can or should do. Yes, we all that a primal urge to fight for our freedom and control of our lives, but when you've been robbed of all dignity and suffered countless abuses, many for their entire lives, you start to understand why uprisings didn't occur more often.

But, yes, you're damn right that I would have fought, probably to the death, for my freedom (if I was mentally and physically sound and capable), but that doesn't mean that I harbor memories and fears from things that people generations ago did that did not involve me.

I know in my heart that I would have been an abolitionist in those times with the perspective that I have right now--I can only hope that I would have had such a perspective back then, too. The thought of owning humans fails on all levels to me.

ETA: A good read that may interest you.

Black people have been enslaving other black people in Africa for longer than the United States has been in existence. Still goes on to this very day.

And how does the vast number of European imigration that occured after the era of American slavery factor into your diatribe? If your lineage has the mark of being slave owners I can certainly understand why you might have an inhearnt fear of your slaves acting just like you would act if the roles where reversed. However not all people have that same chip on their shoulder.

a reply to: JoshuaCox

Funny post coming from a liberal, whose political side uses identity politics and fear to keep their very own social plantation voter base today.

Other then that, I must admit it was a hard read.

Good to know what the other side thinks, kinda sad to see HOW they think.

a reply to: SlapMonkey

A) If you go to other countries sure, but in America the VAST MAJORITY is white identity politics. Since the majority of the population is white it is just considered politics..

B) BWAHAHAHA

Oh that is hilarious... slavery ended less than 2 life times ago and millions of people who went through segregation are still alive today..


That is literally the dumbest thing I will read all week...

Well scratch that.. red kneck saying those who vandalized confederate statues should be executed is, but your real close..

a reply to: JoshuaCox

and?

originally posted by: JoshuaCox
Oh that is hilarious... slavery ended less than 2 life times ago and millions of people who went through segregation are still alive today..

And? Life is tough for people of all colors, improvise, adapt, grow, and get over it... simple as that. Nobody picked my cotton and I didn't whip anyone in my lifetime, therefore these problems are not going to be personally shouldered by me. Pick up a trade, earn a living, provide for yourself, and put your victimhood in the rear view mirror.

a reply to: JoshuaCox

You’re going up against reactionaries and people who just lack understanding.

You're trying to describe human natures reaction to the horrors of slavery and how those ramifications are immense and generational whether we like it or not. And that there are universal symptoms to this experiential malady

You’re trying to be objective they can’t understand that and are reacting emotionally, politically, and defensively.

Nice try

a reply to: JoshuaCox

The whole world was at it long before America existed, slavery that is.

Christ even the Bible pretty much sponsored the travesty from a distance of sorts.

So Americas certainly not the only nation with slave blood on their hands, that's a given.

a reply to: Willtell

Yup. We's to dumb to get it.

a reply to: Willtell

No, I'm saying I don't care, not that I don't understand.

a reply to: JoshuaCox

The assumption that all slave owners were white is a huge misconception. Another common misconception is one that all slaves from the mid 1600's to mid 1800's in North America were black.


The facts are very small percentage of slaves sold out of Africa landed in North America.

Mg

a reply to: JoshuaCox

The great hypocrisy of the US is rooted in slavery and had the savage bloody Civil War to rectify our hypocrisy of all men being created equal while having slaves in the south.

But to say our history is only slavery or whatever you're trying to say is focusing on one issue that had almost a million lives lost to solve and the finale being the Civil rights movement.

Slavery is not our identity but solving and at least trying to create and equal free society for everyone. I don't live in the past mistakes of others but the future which is way better because of the learning from the past.

originally posted by: Willtell
a reply to: JoshuaCox

You’re trying to be objective they can’t understand that and are reacting emotionally, politically, and defensively.

Nice try

From the party that brought you 'Screaming at the Sky: A Losers Guide to Protesting' we now have 'Lessons in Objectivity: Why Whitey Fears an Uprising'.

a reply to: burdman30ott6

Not equally tough...


What would your reaction be to segregation and/or slavery???


Violence right??


You strike me as one of those “white Christian males are the most discriminated against group in America, even though they run everything” types..

If you get upset about fictional discrimination I wonder how you would react the the real deal???

a reply to: SlapMonkey

PS...


What destroyed civil rights after the civil war was 3 things..


1) The death of Lincoln..

2) the fact the average American north and south didn’t give two flips about equality in the first place..

3) the south wasn’t gonna blame themselves for all the lost blood and treasure.. so instead they blamed the one group they could get away with blaming.. the freed slaves..

“If they had just known there place it never happens” - basiclly every southern white in america

a reply to: JoshuaCox

scar of slavery "


The Scar of Slavery Dates back to Over 20,000 Years Ago . Where is the Outrage Over that from the Left Leaning Cherry Pickers of History Today ? ....Hmm....SPQR

a reply to: caterpillage

I think there is a special level of crappy in only one group being subject to slavery because of the pile on effect..


Romans could enslaved anyone not a Roman.. which leaves the Romans as the bad guys to everyone else..

Only blacks could be enslaved in America.. that makes them inferior to everyone else..