Capitol Hill Blue Forums Misc. Topics Ain't This America Slavery by Another Name

In this groundbreaking historical exposé, Douglas A. Blackmon brings to light one of the most shameful chapters in American history—an “Age of Neoslavery” that thrived from the aftermath of the Civil War through the dawn of World War II.

Under laws enacted specifically to intimidate blacks, tens of thousands of African Americans were arbitrarily arrested, hit with outrageous fines, and charged for the costs of their own arrests. With no means to pay these ostensible “debts,” prisoners were sold as forced laborers to coal mines, lumber camps, brickyards, railroads, quarries, and farm plantations. Thousands of other African Americans were simply seized by southern landowners and compelled into years of involuntary servitude. Government officials leased falsely imprisoned blacks to small-town entrepreneurs, provincial farmers, and dozens of corporations—including U.S. Steel—looking for cheap and abundant labor. Armies of “free” black men labored without compensation, were repeatedly bought and sold, ….

More than thirty thousand pages related to debt slavery cases sit in the files of the Department of Justice at the National Archives. Altogether, millions of mostly obscure entries in the public record offer details of a forced labor system of monotonous enormity.

Instead of thousands of true thieves and thugs drawn into the system over decades, the records demonstrate the capture and imprisonment of thousands of random indigent citizens, almost always under the thinnest chimera of probable cause or judicial process. The total number of workers caught in this net had to have totaled more than a hundred thousand and perhaps more than twice that figure. Instead of evidence showing black crime waves, the original records of county jails indicated thousands of arrests for inconsequential charges or for violations of laws specifically written to intimidate blacks—changing employers without permission, vagrancy, riding freight cars without a ticket, engaging in sexual activity— or loud talk—with white women.

The effect that these mundane realities had on the millions who lived under the threat of their consequences, combined with Jim Crow laws, lynchings, and a million other societal roadblocks to self betterment and any chance of a bit of the American dream are plain enough evidence that those who think the anger of Reverend Wright is based on playing the victim are nothing but racists or ignorant uncaring fools.

You provide an amusing example

Toots,
As issodhos has aptly pointed out, there is no valid reason to look back at any prior era to gain understanding of current mind sets. Whatever George Bush, Dick Cheyney, Donald Rumsfeld, etc., have done to drive this country down the rathole; regardless of what Bill and Hillary Clinton may have done during their co-presidency to shame America; whatever embarrassment Jimmy Carter may have caused us by his totally ineffecutal leadership on the Iran hostage crisis; etc., etc., etc. (Yul Brynner), none of that matters. We need not consider that ancient history in our thinking about the current election or a future administration.

You provide an amusing example of why so few take seriously the call to engage in a discussion on race -- regardless of the racial makeup of the participants.:-)
Yours,
Issodhos