Race depicts our culture, ethnicity and who are as a human being. Race tends to define us as having privilege or not having privilege based on our color of skin. We do not have a say in what mother nature brings us, but it is wrongdoing. The wrongdoing of one being not equal because of one’s race is different from another. In the history of enslaved black women and men, they faced difficulties that white men and white women never had to encounter. Some of the common difficulties that black men and women were subjected to, racial oppression, current systemic racism, and how they resisted against this.

Black men and black women were subjected to a life as slaves and had less rights than white men and white women. According to Davis, the oppression of women was near identical to the oppression of men because they were only seen as working hands and were worked the same no matter their gender. In the topic of Slavery, Davis says, “oppression of women […] identical to the oppression of men” (p. 6). Women’s experience of slavery was different from men because they suffered sexual abuse and rape, something their male counterparts were not subject to. In addition, women often had to be the caretaker or caregiver of another person’s child, whose health and well-being was seen as the priority rather than her own. Not only were black women taken advantage of by their white owners, but black men also took practice of taking control over black women because it made them feel like “real men” when they were enslaved. Harriet Jacobs describes unique experiences of enslaved women. Enslaved women were being sexually harassed by slave owners. If a woman did not accept the sexual favors, her children would be sold to other plantations.

Black women had a different experience of oppression than white women. Black women were women of color. People of color were deemed to be underprivileged, had no power, and no rights in history. According to Dr. Whatcott in the slideshow for week 11, “Enslaved Black people were treated legal as property not legal persons.” “Enslaved people were not allowed to get married or have the right to family at all.” (SL 5). For enslaved black women, it was not possible to be a wife and a mother. Black women were forced to be the caretakers of their owner’s children. In most cases, black women were not allowed to have children of their own. They were assumed to be “naturally” caregivers and nurturers of white people. Essentially, it was slave work and they had no rights to be treated equally as white women or have womanhood. Black women were not treated like women, beside white women who had more privileges to do so. “According to Davis, Black women have never been treated as “women” under the dominant ideologies of womanhood” (SL 5). They had no right to oppose those duties and had to obey their slave owner. The slave owner was usually the white man in the family. Enslaved black women were treated as property. When enslaved black women had children, their children basically increased the number of slaves the owner owned and could sell. Enslaved Black women had to uphold the same productivity standards as their non-pregnant/male slave counter parts despite being pregnant. If you were born under an enslaved black woman, you were deemed to be a slave. White women were included in “Cult of Domesticity/True Womanhood”. White women could treat black people how she wanted and be innocent. White women were granted to rights to assume the roles of motherhood and wifehood while black women were not. During the slave era white women were forced to stay in the house, which most likely made it difficult for black women and white women to see each other as allies because they had different privilege rights.

The system of slavery continues to impact Black communities in the U.S today.

Families were broken up to keep black people oppressed and give hierarchy to the system in power. According to Dr. Whatcott in the slideshow for week 12, “this period would last until the Civil Rights movement of the 1950’s/60’s that many call the ‘Second Reconstruction.’ Some consider the Movement for Black Lives taking place now to be a ‘Third Reconstruction.’ ” (SL 15). The BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement is gaining momentum today in this pandemic to promote why black lives do matter within all lives matter. They are fighting for equality as people of color. Black people, such as black men and women are often associated with violence or assumed to be bad people, simple due to the color of their skin and the deeply ingrained racism permeating through society and systems. Although there is an upbringing for BLM, there are also rioters and burglars that have monopolized during this movement. Even though the BLM movement is intended to conduct peaceful protests, it has caused the chaos of burning buildings due to rioters and burglars. The blame for this chaos is put on BLM because of their race, as black people, and people of color. Angela Davis argues, “Although government, corporations, and the dominant media try to represent racism as an unfortunate aberration of the past that has been relegated to the graveyard of U.S. history, it continues to profoundly influence contemporary structures, attitudes, and behaviors” (p 23-24).

Today, black women are working in lower paying jobs at a high rate count than white women. (https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat10.htm) Black people are historically blamed for crimes committed against them and are devalued. Black men would face the consequences no matter if they did not do what they are being accused of. Prison systems are not technically considered mechanisms for slavery but when carefully observed, the actions of prison guards and those upholding the system indicate undeniable signs of modern-day slavery. Prisoners were often segregated by their race and more often than not forced to fight for their freedom in brawl challenges. According to Dr. Whatcott in the slideshow for week 13, “The labor of people in the convict lease system was also used for public works projects such as building roads, levees and railroads.” “In some ways the convict lease system was worse than slavery, [..] no incentive […] to care for the health of the workers in the way that he might have done for his slaves to some degree.” “Leased convicts were not provided shelter or clothes. They were physically punished for all kinds of infractions. If they got sick or were injured, they were expected to continue to work.” (SL 7). “It was through the convict lease system that “crime” came to be increasingly associated with Black people. The criminal justice system became a way of continuing to exploit the labor of Black people by dehumanizing Black people by associating them as criminals.” (SL 7). As previous stated, black people were assumed to be the troublemaker for the crimes. Hence, they usually are found guilty and sentenced to jail, sometimes without fair trails. Black men have been sexually harassed by white women and are unable to defend themselves because they know they will be seen as the culprits in the eyes of whoever testifies. White women were taught to be afraid of black men. White women can easily get them in trouble for things they did not do, and black men will have no choice but to take the consequences.

Black women had numerous attempts historically resisting slavery. Davis explains how Black women resisted the oppression of slavery by escaping, revolting by educating themselves, and fighting back at brutality. Davis explains how a young woman by the name of Ann Wood led a wagonload of armed boys and girls fled for their freedom on Christmas Eve, 1855. There was a shootout with the slave catchers and two of them were killed. The rest made it all the way to the North, according to all indications. At the time, the North represented freedom whereas the South hosted a chaotic enslaved environment. One particularly well-known resister of oppression was a, black woman named Harriet Tubman. According to Davis, the “[…]part played by women in resisting slavery would not be complete without paying tribute to Harriet Tubman for the extraordinary feats she performed as the conductor for over three hundred people on the Underground Railroad.” (Davis 22). Tubman learned to chop wood and split rails. She also learned move soundlessly through the woods to gather food and medicine from plants, roots and herbs; she learned all of this from her father. Davis states that Tubman’s father “[..]gave her lessons [..] prove indispensable during the nineteen trips she made back and forth to the South.” (Davis 23). She had never suffered a or became defeated due to her father’s instructions. In fact, “[..] even today she still holds the distinction of being the only woman in the United States ever to have led troops into battle.” (Davis 23).

Enslaved black women had more in common in with black enslaved men than white women, because they were the same race and color and therefore endured similar kinds of prejudice and discrimination. They were, in many ways, different from white women because could not be a wife or a mother like white women could. Black men and women were subject to slavery and had no privilege. While, in contrast, white men had freedom of power and were the slave owners. In addition, white women had power over black men because they could accuse them of things that they did not do. The system of slavery still impacts us today, such as in our very own prison systems. Racism is still happening today because of historical influences from our ancestors. We the people should have equal rights and together make up the human the race.