A MOM´S PROMISE
A young mother kisses her child goodnight and promises, ¨I´ll protect you, my love.¨ That same night, that young mom watches helplessly as her child is taken away to be sold somewhere in a far away town. She would never see that child again. Under slavery, this most basic promise was impossible to keep. This wasn't rare or exceptional - it was routine business. Is it possible to justify any economic gains from a system that regularly destroyed families for profit?
I don´t know, what do you think?
AMERICA TODAY IN LOVE WITH HALF-TRUTHS
I get it. The legacy of history can sometimes hit really hard, especially in the modern world where transparency makes it harder to bury the truth. Let me give you a few examples; Germany and Europe - The Holocaust. Japan and Asia - The Nanjing Massacre. Turkey - The Armenian Genocide. America - Slavery.
As a country, as a people, the humane thing to do, the right thing to do is to confront the truth, do things to repair the damage, ensure to never forget and then move forward. When we fail to do this, history becomes a hidden scar. It festers, pus oozes from it, and a stench permeates the air, signaling that something is deeply wrong. That smell hovers over America nowadays. The nation behaves like someone who knows they've done something terrible but convinces themselves, "it wasn't that bad" or "there were good reasons" than to fully confront their actions.
Why are half truths accepted by a society? In order to avoid personal guilt and collective responsibility. They become a shield, protecting comfort, privilege, and power, but at the cost of real reconciliation and progress.
To heal, the wound must be exposed to the light. Only then can there be accountability, understanding, and the hope of a future that has addressed the sins of the past.
Today, hurtful half-truths continue to shape discussions about slavery and its legacy, making it harder to have honest conversations about race and racism in America today.
CLASSIC AMERICAN HALF-TRUTHS
Sometimes these half-truths cloud our judgment, having become so ingrained in American culture that we no longer question them. So, when you find yourself thinking or hear someone - a politician, a billionaire maybe - using the following list of common half-truths, take a moment to reflect carefully on their true purpose and the reasons they are being invoked.
So, here we go. Let's start with Number 1. We have two versions:
Isn't that nice. Although it kind of ignores that:
Such "kind" treatment required complete ownership of human beings
Any "kindness" could be withdrawn at any time
Children could still be sold away from their parents
Enslaved people had no legal rights or autonomy
The "family-like" relationship was still one of ownership and control
"Good treatment" often justified the continuation of slavery
It's like saying "some prison guards in concentration camps were kind to prisoners". Not wanting to recognize that even the "best" conditions under any of these systems were still totally inhumane and cruel.
Number 2: "Slavery was mostly a Southern institution"
Half-truth: While the South had the most enslaved people, Northern states and businesses profited heavily from slavery
Northern banks financed slave purchases
Northern industries processed slave-produced cotton
Northern shipping companies transported slave-produced goods
Many Northern fortunes were built on slavery-related commerce
Number 3: "The Civil War wasn't about slavery"
Half-truth claiming it was about "states' rights" or "economic differences"
The primary "right" states fought for was the right to own slaves
Confederate documents explicitly state slavery as their cause
Economic differences were primarily about slave-based agriculture vs. industrialization
Confederate leaders openly declared preservation of slavery as their goal
Number 4: "Most slave owners had small farms and few slaves"
While numerically true, this ignores that:
The largest plantations controlled most of the enslaved population
Small slaveholders participated in and supported the same brutal system
They still separated families through sale
They still had absolute power over human beings
Small-scale slavery wasn't more humane than large-scale slavery
Number 5: "Slaves were better off than poor free laborers"
Ignores the fundamental loss of human rights and dignity
Overlooks the permanent nature of enslavement
Disregards the generational impact of families being torn apart
Minimizes the physical and psychological trauma of being owned
Number 6: "Slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation"
Many enslaved people weren't freed until years later
Sharecropping and debt created new forms of bondage
Prison labor systems were used to re-enslave Black Americans
Jim Crow laws created economic and social oppression
The effects of slavery continued through systematic racism
This oversimplifies complex African political structures
Ignores the coercive nature of the European slave trade
Downplays European creation of the transatlantic slave market
Overlooks how Europeans armed certain groups to capture others
Attempts to shift moral responsibility from European slave traders
Number 8: "Slaves were generally unskilled laborers"
Many enslaved people were highly skilled: Craftsmen, blacksmiths, carpenters
Skilled agricultural workers, Engineers and builders, Nurses and midwives
These were rare exceptions. Most enslaved people had no such opportunities
Any privileges could be revoked at any time
The fundamental condition of being owned remained
The ability to buy freedom doesn't justify enslavement
Number 10: "Irish immigrants had it just as bad or worse"
While Irish immigrants faced discrimination, they weren't legally considered property, and
Their children weren't born into permanent bondage
They maintained basic human rights
They could improve their social status over time
They weren't subject to racial slavery
Number 11: "Many free blacks owned slaves themselves"
While technically true in very small numbers:
Often these were family members bought to protect them
Represented a tiny fraction of slaveholders
Doesn't justify or minimize the broader system of slavery
Usually occurred within the context of trying to preserve families
This modern misconception is often used to suggest some "positive" aspects of slavery while ignoring that:
These skills were forced upon them
They received no compensation for their expertise
The fruits of their labor enriched others
They couldn't freely use these skills for their own benefit
Their innovations and inventions were often credited to their enslavers
It's used to suggest slavery had "benefits" by:
Implying enslaved people gained something valuable from their bondage
Suggesting they wouldn't have learned these skills otherwise
Painting enslavers as somehow benevolent for "teaching" skills
Ignoring that many enslaved people brought skills from Africa
Overlooking that they were denied education in many other areas
This argument is particularly sad because:
It's used to minimize the horrors of slavery
It suggests enslaved people "benefited" from their oppression
It's similar to saying "colonialism brought civilization"
It ignores the destruction of African technical knowledge
It overlooks how slavery actually prevented many from developing their full potential
In modern context, it's often used to:
Suggest Black Americans should be "grateful"
Minimize demands for reparations
Justify ongoing racial inequalities
Suggest slavery had "silver linings"
Deflect from discussions about systemic racism
Number 13: "Slaves built the White House/Capitol/other landmarks, so that shows their importance to American history". While true, this is often used to:
Make slavery seem like just another "contribution" to America
Turn brutal forced labor into a positive "legacy"
Suggest enslaved people should feel pride in their bondage
Avoid discussing reparations for stolen labor
Number 14: "They had their own communities and developed their own culture"
These communities formed under extreme oppression
Culture developed as a form of survival and resistance
Family structures were constantly threatened by sale
Any community could be destroyed at owner's whim
Cultural practices were often suppressed or punished
Number 15: "At least they were brought to America where their descendants have better lives" This modern argument:
Ignores Africa's wealth before colonialism
Assumes America is better than Africa
Overlooks how slavery/colonialism damaged Africa
Disregards the ongoing impacts of racism
Suggests enslavement was somehow beneficial
Number 16: "Slavery gave birth to spirituals, blues, and other music". This minimizes trauma by:
Turning tools of survival into entertainment
Ignoring the pain expressed in these art forms
Making slavery seem culturally "productive"
Romanticizing the response to oppression
Focusing on art rather than suffering
Number 17: "They learned English and Christianity, which helped them advance". This colonial mindset:
Assumes European culture is superior
Ignores the rich languages and religions destroyed
Presents forced cultural destruction as positive
Overlooks how Christianity was used to justify slavery
Suggests assimilation equals advancement
Well, there it is. Phew, that was tiring. An exhaustive list of half-truths. I'm sure there are more. So much effort is placed on trying to hide the truth. Wouldn't our nation truly represent the positive aspects of humanity if it didn't have to make such claims? Anyway, now you know.
Thanks for reading. Abrazos.
Diego Rojas
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