Slavery in the USA was abolished in 1865, does that feel a short or a long time ago to you?
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Slavery in the USA was abolished in 1865...
Created: 09/18/13
Replies: 19
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Posts: 0
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Join Date: 04/21/11
Posts: 338
A short while ago I would have said it feels like a long time ago since it felt like our country had come a long way. But I am not African American so perhaps that is an easy view point for me. And what is going on with our government at this very moment feels somewhat treasonous and somewhat racist and for that it feels like a short time.
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Join Date: 04/14/11
Posts: 112
It seems like a long time ago to me because there were not slaves in my lifetime, but if you look at the history of the world, it is not that long ago. Our country has only been around for about 250 years. Looking at it from that point of view, it was over 150 years ago that we had slaves.
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Join Date: 07/28/11
Posts: 458
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Join Date: 08/29/13
Posts: 102
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Join Date: 07/11/13
Posts: 8
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Join Date: 01/16/12
Posts: 143
What is more relatable to me was the civil rights movement which as a white northerner was so appalling. Having recently seen The Butler, it brought it all home to me. It's hard to believe that took place in my lifetime, let alone directly confronting the horrors that slavery embodied. I can still clearly remember a southern coworker asking me to recommend a restaurant she could take her parents on their first visit north where she could be assured there'd be no negro patrons. This was in the mid sixties and I was shocked by the question. I saw The Help with my granddaughters and they were shocked that blacks were treated in this way. It seems like 1865 was a long time ago and yet the struggle for equality continues.
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Join Date: 07/17/12
Posts: 29
A long time. For me it is sort of like remembering the atrocities of the holocost, a truly horrible, horrible thing that should not have happened and never be forgotten, but ... well, I just sort of think you cannot move on if you insist on wallowing around in angst for things that happened 100s of years ago that are beyond your control. Remember it, yes. Take lessons from it, yes ... but clinging to it as an excuse for whatever events you are not happy with in your life ... nope, that is just not healthy.
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Join Date: 03/13/12
Posts: 564
Slavery seems like a long time ago, but then if I stop and count the actual years 1864 to 2013 - just under 150 years does not sound or seem all that long ago to an adult. I think slavery seemed further removed when I was a student in middle school. It is amazing to think about the disparity between the words in our Declaration of Independence and the reality.
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Join Date: 03/14/12
Posts: 5
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Join Date: 07/30/13
Posts: 22
I went to see The Butler as I was reading this book and was shocked at what African American's had to deal with in the 50's - the scenes showing what the Freedom Riders were painful to watch and harrowing to say the least, then to turn on the news and to see Barack Obama as President? We've come a long way but still have so far to go.
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Join Date: 05/07/13
Posts: 105
The act of slavery was abolished, but I am not sure that the concept has disappeared in some sectors of the U.S. If you think how long civilization has existed, 150 years is not very long. Since the Civil Rights movement occurred in the '60s not much had been accomplished in 100 years so no it doesn't feel that long ago to me. The prejudice that still exists is depressing.
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Join Date: 10/16/10
Posts: 1160
You know, it's tempting to think of slavery as something in the long distant past, but there are actually more people enslaved now than ever before in history (in raw numbers, that is, not percentage-wise). It's different - illegal now instead of condoned, hidden instead of open - but the practice certainly hasn't disappeared.
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Join Date: 10/16/10
Posts: 1160
... And building on Windsong's comment, slavery was common practice throughout history - slaves were part of the spoils of war. A ban on slavery is actually a pretty new concept, when you get right down to it.
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Join Date: 10/15/10
Posts: 3442
KimK is right about a ban on slavery being a relatively new concept and that slavery is alive and well in much of the world today - and actually not illegal everywhere. According to Free The Slaves: An average slave in the American South in 1850 cost the equivalent of $40,000 in today’s money; today a slave costs an average of $90:
https://www.freetheslaves.net/SSLPage.aspx?pid=301
The US State Department http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2007/82802.htm does an annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. It assigns each country one of three designations:
Tier 1: Those countries working hard and succeeding in eradicating slavery.
Tier 2: Countries working hard towards abolition, but failing.
Tier 3: Countries making no effort at all to curb slavery.
The report makes for pretty sad reading. The US isn't in any of its own tiers but is estimated to have about 50,000 slaves in any given year.
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Join Date: 04/22/11
Posts: 34
While slavery was formally abolished in 1865, in many ways slavery still exists. While the acts in the US might not be as overt as they were many years ago, the covert actions that continue to happen are just as damaging. How many CEO of Fortune 500 companies are minorities?
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Join Date: 04/21/11
Posts: 14
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Join Date: 02/13/13
Posts: 2
Slavery seems like a long time ago. But, when I read and re-read how horribly slaves were sometimes treated and compare to how some countries treat women and children today, slavery is still among us....who knows, perhaps right next door?
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Join Date: 09/26/12
Posts: 201
It seems like a long time ago. One of the values of this book is to remind us and inform us that atrocities that occurred at that time. I agree with others that racism is still very prevalent today. Look at our current political situation.
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Join Date: 06/13/11
Posts: 272
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