White slaves!?

Question

White have been slaves to according to a good friend of mine. Vikings where captured of the coast of Africa and keep as slaves for generations. They are estimated to have 3% white slaves in Egypt today. They are locked in the house so foreign media will not know about it. I dont know how i feel about it but i can not feel that there is any wrong doing since the whites enslaved far more of blacks. What do you think?

Answer 1

Yes, whites have been slaves. In fact, in terms of sheer numbers, MORE white were probably slaves over the centuries than blacks (or Indians or Asians, for that matter). However, it was much, much longer ago.

For most of human history, slavery was not a racial issue. Slaves were taken from the same, or closely related ethnic groups. Persians enslaved other Persians, Egyptians enslaved other Egyptians, Greeks enslaved other Greeks (usually from a different area - i.e. Acheans would enslave Spartans and vice versa), Franks enslaved Franks, Saxons enslaved Saxons, Bantus enslaved Bantus, Moors enslaved Moors, etc., etc.

Aristole even wrote that some people are simply born "brutish" and fit only for slavery. He also believed that civilization was impossible without slaves.

Things changed in Europe in large part due to the efforts of a woman named Bathildis in the 7th century. She had been a runaway slave who King Clovis II of the Franks married. She worked very hard, and used her position as Queen, to campaign for the end of slavery. In the end, most of Europe followed suit. Slavery was unknown in Europe by the 11th century, except in part of the Scandinavia were Christianity had not yet been accepted, and in part the Mediterranean where Christian and Muslim forces routinely took prisoners of war as slaves.

By the 15th century, there were only tiny pockets of Spain and Italy where slavery was still practiced. Then in 1441, a Portuguese ship landed in Lisbon. It carried 12 black slaves, who had been purchased from slave traders along Africa's west coast - slavery had never been abolished there, and had continued since ancient times. They were considered something of a curiousity in Portugal, but their status as slaves was condemmed farther north.

Then something changed. Columbus made Europe aware of the New World. The new plantation economy there required a lot of labour. Trying to recruit or cooerce the local population didn't work - a lot of them died of the communal diseases like measles and smallpox that came from Europe. Importing European peasants didn't work - a lot of them died of tropical diseases. Then the planters realized that Africans were mostly immune to both communal and tropical diseases. Since slaves were widely (and relatively cheaply) avaliable from the many, many slave markets on the African coast (where, it is important to note, they were being sold by fellow Africans), that is were the new labour force came from.

It was condemned almost immediately in Europe. The pope issued a Bull threatening to excommunicate anyone who kept slaves. Unfortuantely, the Pope was Europe, and easy to ignore in the Americas.

So slavery was RE-introduced to Europeans, only now there was something new, something sinister. Since the planters were exclusively European, and the slaves were predominately black, slavery, for the first time in history, because a racial issue. Fortunately, it didn't last very long (in the larger scheme of things) - less than three centuries. Already by the 17th century, abolitionists were at work. Unfortunately, it took until the 19th century for slavery to be abolished in the United States, and after that, Brazil.

So what do I think? First of all, that you have incomplete facts and you need to do more study. Second, that slavery is wrong in any form and there is no such thing as "turnabout is fair play" on this question.

Answer 2

Oh yes there were White Slaves owned by Black slave owners. Anthony Johnson paid off his indenture was given 250 acres and bought white slaves then followed up with a black slave whom he refused to free after he had paid off his indenture to Mr. Johnson was brought back and not allowed his freedom. John Johnson son of Anthony was given 350 acres and purchased 11 white slaves who were both male and females. I have researched several sites on History and the same info comes up so sorry you don't want to believe this it is a true historical fact. Neil you are correct it is well known but also well ignored by many.

Answer 3

Slavery is either wrong or it is not. It should not be OK if it is a particular race.

Slavery was not exclusively limited to Blacks in America. Slavery goes back to Biblical times and took part in every civilization known, Sumerians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Romans, etc, name a civilization and you will find slavery. The tribes of Africa, and the Indians of North America all took slaves. If you do not find that slavery is wrong then that speaks for your character, and you either believe in the institution of slavery or believe that slavery is acceptable when the enslaved is of a certain race which would make you a racists, no better or worse than the crowd belong to such celebrated racist as Hitler, Stalin, and all the Klan's running around in sheets in parts of America.

Answer 4

Exuse me Slavery did not come from the whites it came from the first civilisations wich we know were brown, god Celts, Germans and even Slavs were just a few of the white peoples that were put into slavery by the Romans and they did much worse than labour they put you on display in the collosium.

So white people were wrong in taking up that trade so what maybe you should look at what white people are trying to do now the most of white peoples do not look at people from a racial point of view.

FORGIVE AND FORGET

"Cry havoc and unleash the dogs of war"

Answer 5

So if you kick my dog, should I kick your cat? The world is in the mess it is because of thinking like yours. Essentially, what you are saying is that you condone - perhaps even endorse - the slavery of white people whom I imagine never had a black slave. Even for those who did - and I do believe in appropriate punishment for such actions - do you not think that forgiveness and education must come after punishment? The human race will never move forward if we are driven by hate. Slavery is wrong and we should do all we could to abolish it, regardless of race.

Answer 6

Those whites surely did not enslave Blacks, and even if they had, no one deserves to have their life subjected to the whims and needs of another person.

Answer 7

Go back to school and learn something usefull.

Blah Blah to your question what hard life did you have to go through, maybe you were white in a past life.

Btw your avatar is one ugly chick

Answer 8

OK lets look at this logic it wasn't white people who enslaved the black people it was the blacks who enslaved them and sold them to the white people

Answer 9

i guess the sex slave trade in asia is ok also then by your logic. you should think before you post something so ignorant. two wrongs dont make a right.

Answer 10

I personally think you are a racist f@#$%r, And have no time for people like you. And you need to learn grammer, and how to spell sweetheart.