The northern states were just as prejudiced as the south

Whites were not slaves in the term of being truly owned. They were indentured servants. But their "masters" could and did beat them, and treat them bad. Although they could technically walk away, where would they go? They generally had to work 7 years (but it could be more) to pay off their ship passage to America, and when the apprenticeship was over they would work the same job as the master. But sometimes the master did not want them to succeed, because working on their own would make them competition. They would sometimes sabotage them, and make the work time longer. Many died without making it to freedom. So, in all this, you could call them slaves.

 

A couple of years ago I worked with a young lady of Gitchee decent (Michele Obama is of Gitchee decent). Her family records indicate that 10 of her ancestors came to America as indentured servants, but 5 of them were betrayed once they arrived in America and forced into slavery. I have no doubt that this was a common occurrence. Today many Africans will voluntarily (or semi-voluntarily as children) be sold into slavery.
Such problems were not limited to Africans. The "Minorcans" of St. Augustine came to the U.S. as indentured servants, were enslaved, but eventually were able to be freed. They make the world's best clam chowder.

 

We are not talking about 2,000 years ago or even 1,000 years ago.
The statistics I used were based on the period when Europeans started to explore around the world. You could say it is during the last 500~600 years. I am also not talking about Eastern Europe. Sorry, I did not make this clear enough.
Basically I was talking about when the western Europeans started to explore the new worlds and spread out to the colonies around the world. For example, the British empire. How many slaves in the British empire during the 19th century were white? It's either Indians or blacks.

 

It sounds like it is time for some definition of terms. An Octoroon could pass for a White yet legally be enslaved. Octoroon is an old term meaning a person who had one of eight great-grandparents as an African-American (or slave). While geneticly they are more White than Black, legally they were all-Black, at least in the South.

 

Stop the presses... and don't adjust your dials because it's true. Kate and Pendrake actually agree about something! I love, love, love St. Augustine and go as often as possible. You're right about the clam chowder.

I've always enjoyed learning about the Minorcan culture but wish there'd be more of it. Any good books or research papers to recommend on the topic, @thomas pendrake ?

 

Interesting, @Interrogator#6 ... I've not heard that term before. Now that I think of it, I guess that's a good thing that I'm not familiar and that keeping track of such ridiculous things is no longer done and labeled.

 

The history of the Minorcan people is mainly available online, but I also seem to remember that some cookbooks also comment on their history. Much historical comments about them is associated with the datil pepper. See my blog for some recipes. We grow our own datils. They are easy to grow and a little goes a long way. Kate, you should be able to find some whenever you get near St. Augustine, or PM me.

Also, a quadroon is a human who is of 1/4 black African ancestry, 3/4 white of any type. Octaroon, especially when referring to a female, is often meant to be at least partially a compliment. Octoroon women are frequently considered to be beautiful. I suppose only those who are pretty are noticed.

 

I always return loaded down with datil products, yes! I know that Minorcan info can be found online, but that doesn't satisfy me. Much of any topic found online is inaccurate and conflicting so I'd rather have more reliable sources. It's a standing joke here that when I start running out of my datil products, it's time to head back south.

 

My older son grows the datils (as does his mother). Henry can munch on them. Sometimes his cooking is a bit on the spicy side since he has a genetic insensitivity to capsaicin. It's just a flavor to him. My great-grandfather Senator (state) Will Baker had the same genetic trait. The clam chowder is properly made with conch instead of clams. Only use legal conch. I wonder how a datil glaze (I believe I have a recipe for it on my blog. I will check) would work with Gator tail? I am a fifth generation Floridian, third on Mother's side. One of my Aunt's and her husband were primary characters in a Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings novel (South Moon Under). Her husband was the game warden who taught her about Florida.

 

It is another result of racial prejudice.
You have to be 100% white to be identified as white.
Yet, it is ok to identify anyone as black or Asian as long as they have 1/8 or even less black or Asian genes in them.
I even personally know someone who is 1/32 native American and he is labeled as a native American while he looks 100% white.

 

And now for a rebuttal:

While it may be true that some individuals in the North held views toward Blacks which were just as strident as the bigotry found in the South, there was a distinct regional difference. In the North bigotry was not institutionalized and codeified. One example might be that in the North drinking fountains were not labeled.

 

Labeled by whom, @vashstampede ? And is this labeling being done in America? The reason I'm asking is because my dad's great grandmother was Native American which (unless it's too early for my brain to calculate properly) makes me 1/32 as well... and my daddy even closer, and never once in our lives were we considered Native American nor did the subject about *being* so ever arise. (Much to my sadness... the culture fascinates me.)

 

Of course it is done here in the US. Michigan to be exactly.
However, it comes with certain benefits. All the native Americans can go to college for free. We have plenty of native Americans here in our little town but rarely anyone with even a little native (physical) features.

 

Some years ago, during the Carter administration I believe, an edict was placed declaring an individual who is 1/64th black to be black, and the same with the American Indian. 1/64th American Indian is American Indian. Both are acknowledged U.S. wide, not meerly the south.
Example of it's use. Mayor Morial of New Orleans ran the first time in 1977 collecting a major percentage of the white vote. The second time, after finding out that he was technically black he ran again (soapboxing for the black vote) declaring his new ethnic heritage and got a large percentage of the black vote. When the world's fair found itself in New Orleans, part of the contract regarding souvenier booths and permits was that minority groups (specifically blacks) were to be given 50% of the concessions. Mayor Morial's son, with his new found ethnic background was awarded the entire baseball cap concession for the fair.

Another use has been made for each catagory are the benefits that can be garnered by being either part of a minority group or American Indian regardless of nation. I.E. college grants, business grants, small business awards, ect.

 

It is obvious that the North was racist as well. They would sell back freed slaves into slavery. This was shown in the movie 12 years a slave. Everybody in this country was racist or they discriminated against everybody who is not like them. The South hated the North. The Caucasians didn't like the Africans or African Americans. They didn't like the Jews. They didn't like the Scottish. They didn't like the British. Nobody liked anything new or different.

 

Nailah, me thinks thou doth paint with too large of brush.

The way you write one might think everyone hated everyone else universally and indiscriminaly. That was not the case. While many did hate and there was much discrmination it was not universal.

Please recall the famous Dred Scott case. Someone had to present it before the Courts, and it did make it all the way to the SCOTUS if I am not mistaken.

And there were Abolitionists, as well as "Southern Sympatisers". I assure you it was a mixed-bag.

 

The fact is that half of the slaveholders (responsible for far more than half the slaves) WERE the property of Northern absentee slaveholders. Ever hear of the book "Uncle Tom's Cabin"? The villain, Simon Legree, was an overseer for Yankee absentee slaveholders.

 

Yes, that is the untold story. However, No one should ever believe that it was a bed of roses for the freed slaves. As it was then and still prevails now, the propaganda is to show how that each side is superior to the other. and the North was better South in relaying this message.The prevalence of racism was no less in the North that in the South, however, the North may have been more discreet than the South in the promotion of racism.

 

The fact is that once freed. the slaves could no longer expect constant employment, food, healthcare, housing, and protection from the neighbors. No one should claim that every plantation treated its slaves well, but many of the Southern owned ones treated the slaves as family (perhaps as children).