North Vs. South
While
we continually hear that slavery and discrimination existed to a lesser extent
in the North. How did growing up in the
industrial North affect community and its development? The North because of its
close proximities impeded the development of slave communities and sharing of
culture. These close proximities
included living with their master, which disallowed any free time to themselves
without being under watch. In contrast,
slave communities began to build in the South as a result of independent time
from masters in slave housing separate from the main household because of the
greater number of slaves and land in the South.
The South sought perpetual efforts to build community including the desire
for family, human space, African American culture, and protection. While the North was known for greater racial
equality and better treatment amongst slaves, slaves in the South were able to
form a community more so than the North because of the lack of close proximity
at night to their slaver.
In
Homegoing, we see the beginning of
the development of community and family as Ness and Sam form a family in the
South. While they help send their child
to freedom in the North, they are still able to build a community while being
enslaved in the South. Slaves would
protest in their communities by marrying, practicing religion, and dance as a
form of silent protest and expression against their slavers. They would be able to live their own life not
governed by their master in their free time at night. Many slaves would create their own culture
and own way of life after working for the day and return to their families at
night in their own quarters away from the slaver. However, the North due to its close proximity
and industrialization disallowed communities to develop amongst slaves. Slaves would spend their entire day and night
in the same household of their slaver unable to form their own community and
create their own identity. Slavery
became a permanent reality of which they were unable to escape. How did this difference between the North and
the South affect the slave?
While
the North may have had greater freedoms for slaves, the inability for a life
outside of slavery proved to be detrimental.
How could a slave form their own identity separate from that of their
slaver without being part of a community?
Communities provided a break from slavery and an image of freedom for
slaves in the South. How do we see the difference
of North vs. South in leading to slave rebellions as a result of connections to
a community?
It is interesting that you discussed how Africans in the South were better able to form communities with somewhat traditional family structures because they were separated from the slave owners when they were not working. Although living in the South allowed slaves to form stronger, independent slave communities, I think that Africans in the North were able to create a closer bond with their immediate families. Being a slave in the South usually meant that families would be separated, so it was important to forge relationships in the community. In the North, Africans were in closer proximity with their slave owners, true, but I think that they were still able to create identities within their own communities. I think that in the North, the communities were smaller, comprised more often of immediate family members. Slaves were able to marry who they wanted, and could construct a two-parent household. I think that being a slave in the North seems like it was the better option, because more often you were able to stay with your family instead of having to worry about being sold off away from your loved ones. I also think that slaves in the North could create their own identities because they had the model of the free Africans in their community. There were also African institutions in the North such as churches, schools, and business, which helped to create identity. Either way, being a slave created restrictions on the lifestyles of Africans.
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