Why were white people afraid to teach blacks to read and write?

Answer 1

The white Americans didn't want the slaves to learn how to read and write because if they did the slaves would've read The Bible and knew that it was about them. They would've known that Africa was the motherland and that they were the first people on earth and that they were worth more than the white Americans told them.

The white Americans wanted to control the slaves and keep them in fear of them that's why they beat them every time they caught a slave trying to read it. Even when the slave pastors would try to have church the white Americans would tell them what to preach and if they didn't do as they said the white Americans would beat them or even kill them. They wanted the slaves to fear them like they were god.

The Willie Lynch letter explains very well on how they controlled the slaves and kept them in fear.

Answer 2

If you were referring to the era of American slavery, I am not sure afraid is the correct word. There were actually some slave owners that did educate their slaves, although, they were the exception to the overall rule. There were laws against it at the time. There were also additional reasons why owners did not educate their slaves.

For one, many slave owners did not really look at their black slaves as their equals, not just rights wise, but as humans. In their minds, it would have made about as much sense as teaching their dog to read. They just did not see the slaves as mentally capable of learning.

Other owners did not see any need to educate. Their slaves were there to do physical labor, and that was it. They were there to work in the fields, not to read books.

It was also just good business sense, as far as a slave owner goes, to keep slaves uneducated. Any time spent on education, reading, or writing would be time that the slave was not working and turning out product. Also, an increased ability to communicate would allow the slaves to better organize to uprise or escape, thus losing an investment. If a slave was able to read, some owners felt they would be more likely to recognize their poor conditions and want more.

Answer 3

So when they told them to sign some paper, they wouldn't know. They told them a lie and the slaves believed them.