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Slaves are those people who do not choose to work, but are forced to by a master or slave owner, usually indefinitly or for a very lenghtlly period of time. An example would be a Egyptian slave or an African-American slave in the United States prior to the American Civil War (1861-1885). An indentured servant are those people who choose to work, usually to pay off some form of debt. Then once the debt is paid off then they are free to do or work for whom ever they want. Indentured servants were common in the centuries following Columbus' "discovery" of the New World. During that time it was incredibly expenisve to travel to the New World, but one way to pay for the trip was to become an indentured servant. In that instance a company or very wealthy individual, would pay to ship the person and any supplies that his/her would have with them to the New World. Upon arriving at the New World the person would become the shippers indentured servant, having to do work for him/her usually working in the fields or around the shippers house. Then after about 5 years or so, depending on how long the agreed upon terms were, then the indentured servant would be set free and free to start a new life within the New World. Furthermore, the shipper upon releasing the servant would also give him/her some money to help build a new life. So the difference between a slave and a indentured servant is profound.
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BeauSlaves were considered property and had no rights while white indentured servants were under a contract of service for a specific period of time in exchange for passage to the Americas. Indentured servants could eventually gain their freedom, while slaves were considered property for life and their children typically inherited their enslaved status.
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What factor differentiated indentured servants from slaves?
Whether the person was considered property
Why would a landowner rather use slaves then indentured servents?
Slaves were property and they were owned by the plantation owners. All slaves were African Americans and could be identified as slaves. Indentured servants were white people that was working off a 7 year contract. If they wanted they could break the contract and fade into the population.
Why do you think indentured servants became less common as slavery grew?
Indentured servants were suppose to work for 7 years, but often after a couple of years they would leave the indentured contract and faded into the population. When that happened they couldn't be separated from other people because they were white. The slave on the other hand would always be a slave no matter where he/she went because they were black. To leave a plantation they needed a pass and any white person could stop them asking to see the pass. Slaves were owned by another person and considered property an indentured servant was a worker under contract so it was easier to buy a slave for the same amount of money spent on the indentured servant. The slave couldn't escape easily and could be picked out because he/she was black.
Why did English colonists adopt slavery?
English colonists adopted slavery in order to meet the labor demands of their profitable industries, such as tobacco and sugar plantations. They saw enslaved Africans as a cheap and abundant source of labor that would help them maximize profits in their colonies. Additionally, they used racist ideologies to justify the enslavement of Africans and perpetuate the system.
Why were Indentured servant important?
Actually, indentureship didn't work out very well and that is why slaves were needed. The people who came as indentured servants were white Englishmen who wanted to start a new life or get away from the enclosure movement in England. They signed a 7 year contract to work in exchange for their fare to the colonies, but very few finished the 7 years once they arrived. It was easy for them to disappear into the population. When the slaves arrived it was easy to see that they were a slave simply because they were black. Anyone who was black was a slave. It is the slaves who built this country. They stood ankle deep in mud planting rice in the Carolina's , they raised the children, built the roads, dug the canals, cleaned the houses, picked the cotton and worked at what they were told to do. They were property owned by another human and were treated as such.
