The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave Breeding Industry by Ned and Constance Sublette - 2015 - 752 pages

The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave Breeding Industry by Ned and Constance Sublette - 2015 - 752 pages

An Autodidactic Corner Selection

The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave Breeding Industry should be required reading for all teachers of American history.  It shows how slavery corrupted all slavers and inflicted terrible cruelty on the victims.  I cannot find a way to adequately praise this book. Those taught the after school cartoon version of the founding of America will be shocked maybe even hurt by what they learn about God - Like figures like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.  This book left me feeling humbled by my own ignorance of American history.  

Date line (from information in The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave Breeding Industry)

1513 circa - The Spanish first introduce slaves in their territory Florida

1619- First record of slaves entering into Virginia on a Dutch Ship

1623 - Dutch East India Company begins to aggressively import captured persons from Africa.  Throughout the slavery era, western trading companies backed by sovereign powers encouraged war between African tribes in which those taken in war were sold.

1641 - Puritans codify slavery - allowing prisoners of war to be held as slaves, a codicil that will have very destructive consequences on the West Coast of Africa.

1776 - The USA begins the revolutionary war.  Thomas Jefferson authors the declaration of Independence.  His words elegantly claimed liberty was a right of all.  

1781 - Hostilities end in America's victory

1783 - The Treaty of Paris recognizes America's independent status.  The territory of the USA is extended to Mississippi.  A massive political fight began over the expansion of slavery into new areas

In the constitution slaves count as 3/5th of a person, this gave slave holding states a big advantage politically.

1810 - the importation of slaves into USA is banned.  This was sponsored and pushed for by then President Thomas Jefferson.  The as taught in schools myth is that this showed Jefferson, a slave owner, long term wanted to end slavery.  The exposure of the venality and self-serving reasons for Jefferson's actions is presented in completely convincing details. By stopping the import of slaves those already here became much more valuable.  It became very profitable to breed slaves.  When a slave was too old for field work, Jefferson cut their food rations in half.  He was such a poor business man, on his death his slaves had to be sold by auction to partially liquidate his debts.  He is acknowledged as very well read, an elegant writer, and a first rate horseman.  His slave mistress had the same father as his deceased wife.  His mistress, Sally Hemmings was three quarters white, then called a quadroon.  Children of enslaved women were slaves.  

The costliest slave was a light skinned early teenage female, called "A Fancy Girl".  In auctions in New Orleans, they were sold naked. Owners had full sexual rights to slaves and many a southern matron sold off slaves resembling their husbands.

1803 - The Louisiana Purchase doubles the territory of the country, opening up a vast market for slaves.  New Orleans become a major city for the slave trade

1821 - Florida becomes a USA Territory

1830 era. Slaves are subject to experimental surgery, mostly on women designed to make them better breeders.

By 1850 there were about four million enslaved persons.

1861 - civil war begins, the southern states wanted slavery.  The common poor people of the southern states were told it was a war for liberty, that the north wanted to have their slaves take over.

1865 - 13th Amendment is signed freeing the slaves.  This was intended, and it worked, to destroy the financial system and economy of the south.

The biggest theme of The American Slave Coast: A History of the Slave Breeding Industry  is to show how slaves were more than just labor.  Slaves represented a huge stock pile of wealth.  You could borrow on them at the bank, breed them and sell of your surplus (children were put to work at about age five, women impregnated as soon as biologically possible.  Banks would package together loans on slaves and sell them, just as are housing loans now.

Ned and Constance Sublette supply hundreds of horrifying details on the slave trade.  They go into much detail on the political infighting over slavery in the era up to 1865.  Eight of the first twelve presidents owned slaves.  Andrew Jackson is given a very negative portrayal, very well deserved.  

Slave ownership destroyed much of the integrity of slave owners.  Few seemed to realize the hypocrisy of claiming you believe all men are entitled to freedom while owning slaves.  

This book will shock many.  It did me.  I am very grateful to Ned and Constance Sublette for the hard work behind this book.

To not read this is to be willfully protected by ignorance.

Mel u