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Two years after he landed in America, Christopher Columbus became the first European to set foot on the island of Jamaica. He is noted as saying that he had never seen a fairer isle. Since the Caribbean was lacking the commodity this Italian was searching for, namely gold, initial European insurgence in Jamaica didn’t occur for another couple of decades. Because Columbus was contracted by the Spanish monarchy, Jamaica was initially a colony of Spain. When the Spanish did arrive they were met with resistance from the indigenous Carib Indians. Eventually the size and advanced weaponry of the Spaniards were too much for the Indians and they succumbed. The Europeans, as they were known for doing, brought disease and forced labor conditions to Jamaica. In 1655 the British overtook the island from Spain. They saw how useful this midpoint could be in the slave trade from Africa to America. It is estimated that of the 10 million African slaves abducted during the 300 years of the transatlantic slave trade 50% came to Caribbean colonies. Also, the British saw Jamaica and its lush vegetation as a potential source of agricultural goods and raw material minerals. Thus, plantations were set up all around the low lying coast. Since slaves were coming through anyway, the convenience of finding workers for these plantations made them very economically viable. In fact between 1670 and 1807 an estimated 750,000 slaves came to Jamaica to work in the plantations1. The main exports they were producing were sugar and bananas. In 1770 23,000 whites compared to 200,000 black slaves lived in Jamaica. Due to this huge indifference in population, many would question why the Africans would not simply revolt against the plantocracy. However, the Europeans were mildly cleaver with regards to this issue. They mixed slaves from all over Africa in each plantation. Slaves with different languages, customs, appearances, and traditions were grouped together. Even though several revolts against the plantocracy did occur, due to the mess of different cultures, none were organized enough to completely overthrow the elites. Conditions in the plantations were horrible for the slaves. They were beaten daily. Many were killed. The women slaves were often raped by the white rulers of the plantations. These rapes resulted in mixed race babies sometimes referred to as “mulattos”. These mixed race slaves were allowed to work in and around the big house. This alienated them from their African culture while they were simultaneously not accepted by the whites. Even the poorest lowest ranking white person was held in higher stature than the most respected black. In 1834 the British Parliament abolished slavery. It’s speculated that the deeper reason for this abolishment, other than for human rights issues, was due to the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution put the power in the hands of the capitalist and away from the land owning aristocracy. The manufacturing not the agricultural sector was given precedence. The factories needed workers, but not slaves. Slaves require land to be housed upon. Agricultural production also requires a vast amount of land. Therefore slaves and agriculture go hand in hand. In manufacturing the only land needed is the plot where the factory is located. Therefore, it is better to pay workers in the manufacturing sector so that they can pay for their own food and lodging. The plantocracy fiercely resisted the abolishment of slavery. In fact, the governor of Jamaica at the time in trying to remain in line with the British Parliament dissolved the local parliament which was pro-slavery. However, the newly elected parliament resisted abolition just as much. Due to all this resistance, the British Parliament decided to allow the local planters to decide the nature and speed of the abolition process. Obviously the plantocracy took their sweet time releasing the slaves. However, being released from slavery was far from the end of problems for the newly freed Africans. Between 1838 and 1865, 60% of slaves left the plantations for the interior of the island and planted small plots of land. The interior of Jamaica is composed mostly of mountains which make agricultural practices very difficult. Farming for subsistence was so difficult that many of the released slaves returned to the plantations to work. They worked to pay for their plots of land and to support their families. Conditions were better for the ex-slaves because they were free, but freedom seems to come in stages. The end to slavery in Jamaica did not translate into increased political influence for the ex-slaves. In the 1863 elections only 1,789 of the 440,000 people living on the island were allowed to vote2. Even though they were free, it was not their island they were living on. They had no power or control. They were hated and discriminated against. They were not given the opportunity to thrive. They were taken from their original homes and cultures treated horribly and then forced to fend for themselves with very few rights. Also after slavery was abolished, Portuguese were immigrated into Caribbean colonies by the British. They were given the opportunity to become retail traders, an option the blacks were not allowed to exercise. The British did this in hopes of creating a white middle-class. The Ideals of this act exemplify the feeling of the British that the blacks were an inferior race. It’s easy to see how this mix of racial prejudice and economic discrimination continued to determine life after slavery for the ex-slaves. |