History
Snapshots
In the snapshots below, we aim to show how racial views have shaped our nation's social, political, legal, and cultural development. We argue, as many historians do, that beliefs in Black racial "inferiority" and White racial "supremacy" have influenced our country alongside the goals of freedom and democracy. As we provide these overviews, we have sought to center and reference Black scholars as much as possible. Throughout the entire historuy section, we focus on two themes:
We examine the impact that the United States’ history with slavery and segregation has had on the Black community, particularly by controlling access to where Black people could live (land and housing) and what they could do to make money (economic livelihood).
We explore the ways that the hopes, dreams, patience, frustration, and anger drove the African American community to cultivate thriving communities and to push the United States toward a more perfect expression of our ideals of freedom and democracy.
In conclusion, we hope these snapshots inspire deeper study and promote understanding our history and what has led to many of the injustices we face today so that we are equipped to be better collaborators, problem solvers, and citizens for a more just country and world.
1619: Setting the Course of U.S. History
Starting in the early seventeenth century, kidnapping and enslavement brought thousands of African men and women to the shores of America. The enslavement of Africans drove the economic success of the British colonies and what would eventually become the United States of America. Enslaved African men, women, and children asserted their humanity and dignity as they built new lives as enslaved people in North America.
1630: Western Notions of the “Black Race”
The enslavement of African men and women in the American colonies was supported by Western thought and religious interpretation, which portrayed Black people as inferior to White people and cursed by God. As Western views drove justification for enslavement, African men and women resisted dehumanization and asserted their humanity, dignity, and rights.
1662: Black Enslavement Legalized
As White farmers in the colonies became dependent upon African forced labor for economic success, they passed laws that used race as the justification for perpetuating African bondage and forced labor, thereby protecting White cultural, political, and economic dominance.