Welcome to the blog site for History 412 Section 38279 at the University of Kansas for Fall 2007. We meet regularly on Thursdays at 1pm in Wescoe 4001. Lon Strauss is your discussion leader.
This blog is a more casual environment to foster discussion and your understanding of the course readings and lectures. Your participation here will count toward your overall discussion grade. Please be respectful to each other, but don't be afraid to disagree or play devil's advocate. Have fun with the subject matter.
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16 comments:
How did the slave trade happen so freely in Washington, in the shadow of the capitol?
i'm not sure how freely this trade happened, but perhaps since the pen he was taken to was so close to the Capital, very few might have thought such a place could be operating there. Page 22 describes the features/structure of the slave pen. The author said it looked like a famers barnyard, appearing as a quite, private residence. If i remember correctly, the slaves were kept in underground cells-able to hear footsteps above them and that its very construction would hide the movment of slaves in and out of the building
I can not imagine how you could treat all the slaves as poorly as they were treated. They clearly are human beings and were being treated worse than dogs. The mindset of slave owners must have been completely skewed from birth.
Well slave owners did originaly apologize for things, and defend slavery as a necesarry economic evil. It wasn't until militant abolition really picked up steam that they switched to the view that slavery was regiously and morally defensible. Besides, it's not like conditions really improved with the abolition of slavery. Sharecropping was just as evil an institution.
You cannot leave our the idea that it is better to always have someone beneath you. Slavery allowed even the poor white man in society to be socially above someone. Feeling as if you are better than at least 1 other group of people can make a person continuue doing something even if it is morally wrong. Everyone from large plantation owners, to the poorest white men needed slavery to exist to maintain their social superiority in their community.
With so many whites worried about rebellions, one man named James Hamilton Jr. took advantage of this and made up the Vesay rebellion to further his political interests. Over 131 slaves were caught and killed over one mans lie. Just shows how easlity people were swayed.
I feel that the southerners knew that what they were doing was extremely wrong. But the reason that they couldn't stop it was because it was their economy, they would never have been able to do the field work that the slaves do. They didn't have the money to pay people for this hard labor. This was the only was for them to make a profit in the south and still keep there southern old style ways.
I think it has been very interesting to see the involvement that Kansas had in the beginings of the Civil War and even further Lawrence. I had prior knowledge of this however I did not realize how big of a deal it was.
lol, you're in conspiracy theories in American History, aren't you Rob? We discussed that topic on the fourth in class. Pretty crazy about how the courts responded to criticism by trying and executing more people, huh?
I'm interested that the actions of politicians from the South was even more "barbaric" overall than those from the North. South Carolina in particular seems to have a lot of violent men in office. Aside from the attack on the Senator from Mass., there was another Senator from South Carolina that pulled a gun on Sen. Benton from MO because Benton was so anti-slavery. Surely this wasn't common practice on the hill for senators and reps to just beat each other in the house and senate chambers??
How is that Dred Scott, a black slave was able to plead his case for freedom in a court? I'm surprised that he was even allowed to have any rights in a courtroom.
Is it just Epps, or were many of the slave owners really dumb. For example, why would Epps believe Northup over Armsby? I can't imagine any slave owner taking the word of Northups over Armsby
I really do not understand how Dred Scott was even allowed in a court room much less the Supreme Court. If blacks had no rights, who would allow him to speak, especially when he was a slave. If anyone understands why he was given an opportunity at all please post back.
It is crazy to think that a person can recieve money for the free or enslaved blacks that they found. The poor white man with the idea that he has a higher status was easily provoked to engage in capturing slaves for the benenfit of money and self gratification.
other than it being illegal, what others reasons would the washington slave pen have for not keeping records of who was captured, when and how much they were sold for, ect?
I think that it is crazy that civilians would travel to the battle grounds to watch as the picniced and drank during the entire battle. IF anyone did that today they would have the chance of being taken hostage. Times have changed
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