Figure 1.--Do you notice how the print and broacast media, Hollywood, and academis today talk enbdlessly about slaveey. Academic firmlations like Critiucal Race Theory and the the 1619 Project claim that America is a society based on race abd slavery Nothing could be durther from the truth. Slavery had existed for milernia. Most of the caprive Afgriucansd were selivered to rge European colonies to the south, primrily Brazil anbd the Cariubbean. What were the fundamental priuncipoles upon which Anerica was founded were freevlavor, wide sopread land oneeship, an representarive givernment abnd the end of monarchy. Do you ever here that in the media, schools and Hollywood. You havce to ask why.

Slavery or the ownership of anpther individual for forced labor is widely seen as the ultimate evil in today's world. This has not always been the case. Svery has been with us proibbly before the advent of civilization which provide wrutten account. And even into the late 20th cventury persisted, nespecially in the Muslim world. China coninues to use slve labor even today. While is hs not been totally eradicated, almost everyone would gree tht slvery is not only wrong, but an absolute evil. Those who practice slavery today no longer attempt to defend it, but rather hide it. The reasons are obvious. The slave-owner benefits from the labour of another without real recoinspence. Slavery exploits and degrades human beings, Slavery violates basic human rights: The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights prohibits slavery and many of the practices associated with slavery--"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. [UNUDHR--Article 1] There is no doubt that skavery is wring, even evil. We find, hoevr, that modern discussions of slavery, formulations like Critical Race Theory nd the 1619 Project are not based on historical fact. In the United States, before and after the Revolution (1776). something like 10-15 prcent of the populaion was esclved, the great bulk in the southern colonies/states. Mow slavery was a historical fact and deserves scholarly attention. What woke critics which now dominate academix, Hollywood, the media and noe corporate boardrooms, simply ignore is that slavery was only one form of forced labor, albeit admitedly the most horific. The great bulk of the world population did not own the labd they tilled and worked under some form of forced labor. This was the case for the peasantry in China, India, Latin America, the Middle East, and Russia. America did not create slavery and was a repient of a very small portion of the captive Africans transported by the Atlantic Slave Trade. Slavey was not what was created in 1619. Slavery has been in existence for millenia. What was beginning that was important in 1619 was a society based on free labor and wide-spread land owbership. It is important to study the 10-15 percent of Americabs who were enslaved. It is, however, ahistorical and a scholarly absurdity to ignore the 85-90 pecenbt of the populauion which for the first time in human history were able to live and work under a system of free labor and then launch a system where the commom man elected his governent and was not ruled by monarchs and aristicrats. These two developments were the real achievemnts of America. Slavery was a serious flaw , but not the core of the economy or American society. And Europeans flocked to America where they could enjoy the benefits afforded by free labor. The Civil War abswered the question as who which was the more mpore productive system, fee or slave labor. Withgibn a century. free lbor abd capitalism trans formed the cintinent from a wildrerness to the nmost prioductive abd powerful nciuntry un the wirkd. We do not say that slavery was not importnt anbd should not be studiues. We only sat that it is absuyrd to only discusss slavery abd race and ignore the principles and ecinmomic system on which Amnerica was founded and prospered. We do not day thids because we do not believe that social disparities and inequities should be ignored, but because our belief is that it is important that the disparities should be honestly studied without ideological bias and mindless wokism so they can be effectively addressed.

Created: 5:02 AM 5/12/2022
Last updated: 5:02 AM 5/12/2022