Slave Quote by Eric Williams
““The first instance of slave trading and slave labor developed in the New World involved, racially, not the Negro but the Indian. The Indians rapidly succumbed to the excessive labor demanded of them, the insufficient diet, the white man’s diseases, and their inability to adjust themselves to the new way of life. Accustomed to a life of liberty, their””
About This Quote
Source Book: “Capitalism and Slavery” by Eric Williams, 1944
Early New World slave labor targeted Native Americans, whose labor was crushed by overwork, disease, and cultural disruption, highlighting the brutal foundations of colonial economies.
In simple terms: Native Americans were first enslaved, suffering greatly.
Key Takeaway
Recognize the full history of exploitation.
Themes
colonialism
exploitation
race
economics
human rights
Mood
somber
critical
Type
historical
educational
When to use this quote
- academic courses
- museum exhibits
- public policy debates
Key Concepts
historical analysis
post‑colonial theory
economic history
Questions to Reflect On
- What were Native Americans' responses?
- How did this shape later racial hierarchies?
A Different Perspective
May oversimplify complex interactions among groups.
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
