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Slaves were treated as property instead of people. They were cruelly and harshly punished if they misbehaved, even killed if they did not abide by their masters' wishes.
It was a very hard life as a slave and very difficult to imagine now.

Whole families would be taken from their homes in Africa against their will and moved in dreadful cramped, diseased conditions on ships. Many died during the voyage.

The people would then be sold as slaves - separated from their family - and become the property of someone, just like you would own a bicycle or a car. They had no rights at all.

This would mean they might have to change their name to that of their owner, and work really hard for up to 18 hours a day in terrible conditions.

Addendum:The fact is, aside from being personal property, once a slave reached the plantation they enjoyed a standard of living much higher than that of white, non-slave holding farmers.

Consider that in 1865, the US Army paid $150 a head for good horses, what few remained. While five years earlier slaves sold for $2000. One does not buy a Lamborghini Veneno to enter into a demolition derby. Slaves were a huge investment and owners typically did all they could to care for that investment.

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7y ago

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