Monday 25 December 2017

History And Ancestry Related To A Slavery Biography

By Roger Wagner


With the onset of yet another era in what appears a major issue with racial equality, it is more important than ever to understand the past when it comes to this issue. While personal experience remains limited, there are some publications which were written by actual slaves. One of these publications reflects the slavery biography of a Slave which describes the experience of the Reverend Charles Thompson as a child during slavery in the American south.

There are not many biographies written by actual slaves though some personal letters have been discovered and published. Although, there is one biography in which many professors, teachers and scholars agree shows an accurate account of the times. The biography, written by Reverend Charles Thompson describes in detail the experiences the man had has a young boy and young adult in the slave trade. In fact, many compare the book to a front row seat when it comes to learning and viewing the history of the slave trade.

Born in Atala County, Mississippi, Charles relates a number of experiences which occurred after his owner Mr. Kirkwood passed away when the boy was only 9 years old. As an owner of multiple plantations, it was feared by other plantation owners that the slaves would escape or rebel. As such, the boy reports that the slaves were separated from families and sold on the open market.

Left alone on the Kirkwood plantation, Charles began to work on the plantation as a young boy. Then, when Mr. Kirkwood died when boy was only 9, the slaves were separated in fear of an attempted escape and rebellion due to the number of slaves Kirkwood owned on multiple plantations. As such, once an adult Charles was hired out to a number of different plantations by different owners who would pay the highest price.

In order to gain insight into the life of Ben and Charles, there are two films which have purported to show slavery in a true light. These are the mini-series known as Roots by Alex Hailey, and the film Django Unchained. In both cases, there is a great deal of graphic violence as was the case during the time. As such, the films can often be difficult, especially for viewers under the age of 12, though do show some of the most important history related to slavery.

In most cases, during the slave trade, slaves were considered personal property who could be owned, sold and traded by plantation owners and slave masters. While entire families may have been sold into the system, many were later sold separately and families destroyed. Whereas, those whom refused to do assigned chores, attempted to escape or rebelled, were often punished severely.

Once owned by a Master or Slave owner, the individuals were required to perform chores and work without pay. In most cases, slaves lived in quarters which were less than acceptable. Whereas, most had to do extra chores for room and board as required by owners.

It is sad to think that many individuals living today, Black, White or otherwise may have been the descendants of slaves whom were raped and tortured by slave owners and masters. While this is the case, many are learning of these connections through current DNA testing. In many cases, the individuals and families can handle the news while it can tear others apart.




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