The Pros And Cons Of Slavery

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Slavery has always been a topic of discussion; especially during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. There are people who support slavery and those who think it was an immoral thing people did. Even though the opponents of slavery believe that slavery was wrong because it took away the inalienable rights of the slaves; treating them as a marketable commodity and went against the concept of the Declaration of Independence: about all men being equal, the proponents still think that slavery caused the economy of the world to improve, prompted the betterment of the people as a whole and they defend the Declaration of Independence by not including slave as “Americans” during that time. There has been many arguments about slavery based around …show more content…

Huge number of slaves were owned and controlled by individuals for their sole benefit. Most European colonial economies in the Americas from the sixteenth through the nineteenth century were dependent on enslaved African labor. In the article, Cotton is King, David Christy explains a similar matter. “By the industry, skill, and enterprise employed in the manufacture of cotton, mankind are better clothed; their comfort better promoted; general more highly stimulated; commerce more widely extended; and civilization more rapidly advanced than in any preceding age” (Christy 55-6). Christy argues that slavery played a huge role in strengthening the economy of the world. Furthermore, he proceeds towards a fact-based analysis, “Nine tenths of the cotton consumed in the Christian world was the product of slave labor in the U.S” (Christy 55-6). He thinks that if slavery did not happen, today, we would not be in this same level of capitalism. Slavery actually helped improve the economy during that time and it increased living standard of people as they were getting more goods and in a cheaper price. Christy managed to show the strongest element of the pro-slavery argument, thus, his argument is …show more content…

In response they said, “It is too clear for dispute, that the enslaved African race were not intended to be included, and formed no part of the people who framed and adopted the Declaration of Independence”(Taney, 756-758). This thought about the slaves not being intended to be included as “men” in the law is faulty. Even though slaves were thought to be properties, they were still human being and they deserved the same right as any other human being did. Taney also added, “No one of that race had ever migrated to the United States voluntarily; all of them had been brought here as articles of merchandise”(Taney, 756-758). This statement is not satisfying either. Despite the fact, the slaves did not come to America willingly, they were forcefully brought here by the white men for their self interest and it was their responsibility to treat them as citizens and give them the same rights as they were

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