Would America have been the Super Power it is today without slavery?

Question

I think you Americans have a lot of dues to pay back to the descendants of the people who helped you get here.

Answer 1

It's a hard question for me to answer honestly without being chastised by some people, but you asked so here goes.

I think the scales about balance on this one. There was a great deal of labor provided by slaves primarily on the plantations of the South. You must understand it wasn't free; it was similar to today’s industry investing in a machine. The initial cost was substantial; there was maintenance in the form of food and medical as well as housing and clothing. If they had been paid a wage, the cost of the labor wouldn’t have been twenty or fifty times the cost of the slave. People would have you believe that but if you look into some of those costs it will surprise you.

When the Civil War was over the cost of reconstruction was substantial. Add to that certain mind sets that are still around 150 years later like the "KKK" with its hate and "The South's Gonna Rise Again" attitudes. The problems brought on by segregation, the civil unrest associated with the civil rights movement and yes, I think the scales about balance.

Please don't misunderstand me, I am not saying any of it was good or bad, I am only trying to answer your question as you asked it. It is just as important to ask where we would be if no slaves had been imported. As well as the effort to absorb a workforce the size of the group that formed when the slaves were freed.

Black Americans have contributed significantly to the America as we know it but so have other ethnic groups including mine. My ancestors came from Germany via the British Isles and specifically Ireland. Many of them were virtually slaves as well.

I think America is a huge caldron and it is far too difficult to separate out any specific group. My people gave America the Atomic Bomb that ended WWII. My friend, who is black, ancestor developed and perfected blood transfusions, a process that has also save countless lives including mine. We are friends, I didn't invent the bomb and he didn't develop transfusions. Let's recognize those who contribute and not get into some racist discussion designed to make whites feel guilty. I never owned a slave and my friend was never enslaved and we both know that, why can't the rest of America figure that out as well?

There you go, I only hope you can read it in the spirit it was written. It is much easier to tower above the rest when we stand on the shoulders of giants. Whether they were black, white, green or purple we have some giants living amongst our ancestors.

If you want to honor a group for the America as you know it today, thank a Veteran. From Valley Forge to Bagdad these men and women of all shapes, colors, religions, and creeds have sacrificed everyday for over 200 years to keep this piece of real estate safe

Answer 2

I'm going to go out on a limb here...
The answer is no, but not for the reasons you would think.

Abolishing slavery was only one of the accomplishments of the Civil War. If there were no slaves and a federal government that had no need to impose on the south, there may have not been a Civil War. This could have led to less international contact and sophistications in weapon development and production. The Germans could have won WWI.

This is highly speculative but probable.

By the way, slavery is alive and well today. Children all over the world are kidnapped and sold to people who use and abuse them horribly for personal wealth and pleasure. Parents usually will never hear from them again.
Who is going to pay their dues while we are presumably alive and well...possibly enjoying the videos???

Answer 3

America would be a stronger power without slavery because we wouldn't have been paying so much welfare to the descendants of slaves and could use that money to build a stronger military. We also would have never had the affirmative action programs that keep better qualified whites out of college and pay for lesser qualified minorities to go to college instead.
America pays for slavery every day.

Answer 4

Slavery existed in the U.S. for a less tha 100 years. The chief use of slaves was as cotton pickers on plantations. By the time of the civil war, slavery was already on the way out as it had become far too expensive to maintain. The U.S. has become a super power primarily through the development of sophisticated weapons. There is little, if any connection to 18th and 19th century cotton plantations.

Answer 5

YES. we did not become a world super power until 100 years after our civil war ended slavery. Every one who helped us become the best country on the planet is being payed for that. We all get to live here. I don't know what country you are from? There are few industrialized countries that don't have skeletons in their closets.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

boy oh boy, you really overestimate the positive economic effects of slavery. only the southern states allowed slavery, most whites were too poor to own slaves, and slavery was abolished before the industrial age. at that time, the usa was no stronger than most other countries. my own great great grandfather (an Englishman) was captured and enslaved by the mormons in utah (riders of the purple sage) at a time when the utah mormons decided they wouldn't accept any more settlers. do the mormons owe me something?

Answer 8

yes...we still would be on top...slavery ended before the rise to power following the Great War of Northen Aggression...the base built on slavery fell apart in 1865 and all that followed came after that date...so go do some more useless speculation about somebody elses country

Answer 9

Should we also pay restitution to the Irish who were treated worse than blacks as slaves? Irishmen were cheaper than black slaves and were given jobs that would usually kill a more expensive black slave. Find one person alive today that was a slave themselves and then find his master and make the master pay back wages, otherwise quit asking for handouts for things you or I had nothing to do with. This is a crybaby subject. MLK and other leaders who have done things with themselves never cried for back wages, they pushed themselved forward. Nothing in life is free especially freedom. In this life, you earn what you get! A bunch of poor bastards enslaved to pick cotton are not the core of our current power!

Answer 10

Yes. The United States isn't the only country who has had/have slavery. People don't particularly understand that our forefathers in this country aren't the only ones who did it, and we won't be the last country to do it.