--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: African slavery lacked two elements that…" description: "\"“African slavery lacked two elements that made American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history: the frenzy for limitless profit that comes f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg" --- # African slavery lacked two elements that made American… ![“African slavery lacked two elements that made American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history: the frenzy for limitless profit that comes from capitalistic agriculture; the reduction of the slave to less than human status by the use of racial hatred, with that relentless clarity based…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg) > ““African slavery lacked two elements that made American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history: the frenzy for limitless profit that comes from capitalistic agriculture; the reduction of the slave to less than human status by the use of racial hatred, with that relentless clarity based on color, where white was master, black was slave.”” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. American slavery was uniquely cruel because it combined capitalist profit motives with racial hatred, reducing enslaved people to less than human based on color. **In simple terms:** US slavery was especially brutal due to profit and racism. Key Takeaway Understand how economic and racial forces intensify oppression. Themes slavery capitalism racism human rights Mood somber educational Type historical analytical When to use this quote - education curricula - human rights advocacy - policy reform - public discourse Key Concepts systemic oppression economic exploitation racial hierarchy Questions to Reflect On - How does profit drive cruelty? - What lessons apply to modern exploitation? A Different Perspective Other forms of oppression also involve profit and dehumanization. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-slavery/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) ## Related quotes > [“American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history: the frenzy for limitless profit that comes from capitalistic agriculture; the reduction of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/american-slavery-the-most-cruel-form-of-slavery-in-history-the-frenzy/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We must work together, across nations and sectors. Only then will we consign the hideous crime of slavery to the history books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-mordaunt/we-must-work-together-across-nations-and-sectors-only-then-will-we/) [Penny Mordaunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-mordaunt/) > [“The existence of Slavery in its most cruel form among them, has a tendency to brutalize the humane and finer feelings of their nature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/the-existence-of-slavery-in-its-most-cruel-form-among-them-has-a/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“The history of slavery is the history of the United States. It was not peripheral to our founding; it was central to it. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-smith/the-history-of-slavery-is-the-history-of-the-united-states-it-was-not/) [Clint Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-smith/) > [Yielding to Jesus will break every form of slavery in any human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/yielding-to-jesus-will-break-every-form-of-slavery-in-any-human-life/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [Free yourself from one passion to be dominated by another and nobler one. But is not that, too, a form of slavery? To sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikos-kazantzakis/free-yourself-from-one-passion-to-be-dominated-by-another-and-nobler/) [Nikos Kazantzakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikos-kazantzakis/) > [We're all slaves to death is our biological curse and thus a form of slavery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/we-re-all-slaves-to-death-is-our-biological-curse-and-thus-a-form-of/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [African slavery, as it exists in the United States, is a moral, a social, and a political blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/african-slavery-as-it-exists-in-the-united-states-is-a-moral-a-social/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [This country was formed for the white not for the black man. 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Keitt > [I say, then, that viewed from that standpoint, there is but one single subject of complaint which Virginia has to make against the government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-brown-baldwin/i-say-then-that-viewed-from-that-standpoint-there-is-but-one-single/) John Brown Baldwin > [“The American Anti-Slavery Society, on the other hand, said the war was “waged solely for the detestable and horrible purpose of extending and perpetuating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-american-anti-slavery-society-on-the-other-hand-said-the-war-was/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“To have a museum chronicling the great crime that was African slavery in the United States of America would be to acknowledge that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/to-have-a-museum-chronicling-the-great-crime-that-was-african-slavery/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [In every man's mind the good seeds of liberty are planted, and he who brings his fellow down so low, as to make him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-highland-garnet/in-every-man-s-mind-the-good-seeds-of-liberty-are-planted-and-he-who/) [Henry Highland Garnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-highland-garnet/) > [My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/my-paramount-object-in-this-struggle-is-to-save-the-union-and-is-not/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. Not overwhelming evidence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-can-understand-pessimism-but-i-don-t-believe-in-it-it-s-not-simply/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it. It is a corrective to the sluggishness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Now I have been studying very closely what happens every day in the courts in Boston, Massachusetts. 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The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More American slavery quotes > [I do think that some form of reparations for the descendants of American slavery would go a long way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-chatterton-williams/i-do-think-that-some-form-of-reparations-for-the-descendants-of/) [Thomas Chatterton Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-chatterton-williams/) > [My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/my-paramount-object-in-this-struggle-is-to-save-the-union-and-is-not/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-would-save-the-union-i-would-save-it-the-shortest-way-under-the/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/if-i-could-save-the-union-without-freeing-any-slave-i-would-do-it/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [We all declare for liberty, but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/we-all-declare-for-liberty-but-in-using-the-same-word-we-do-not-all-2/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [In every man's mind the good seeds of liberty are planted, and he who brings his fellow down so low, as to make him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-highland-garnet/in-every-man-s-mind-the-good-seeds-of-liberty-are-planted-and-he-who/) [Henry Highland Garnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-highland-garnet/) > [The Autocrat of all the Russias will resign his crown, and proclaim his subjects free republicans sooner than will our American masters voluntarily give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/the-autocrat-of-all-the-russias-will-resign-his-crown-and-proclaim/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [If any should be slaves, it should be first those who desire it for themselves, and secondly, those who desire it for others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/if-any-should-be-slaves-it-should-be-first-those-who-desire-it-for/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Free labor has the inspiration of hope; pure slavery has no hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/free-labor-has-the-inspiration-of-hope-pure-slavery-has-no-hope/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“The American Anti-Slavery Society, on the other hand, said the war was “waged solely for the detestable and horrible purpose of extending and perpetuating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-american-anti-slavery-society-on-the-other-hand-said-the-war-was/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/the-world-has-never-had-a-good-definition-of-the-word-liberty-and-the/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. I can not remember when I did not so think, and feel.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-am-naturally-anti-slavery-if-slavery-is-not-wrong-nothing-is-wrong-2/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Lawrence Hill, a cultural and spiritual descendant of West African griots, has used his vast storytelling talents to create an epic story that spans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/afua-cooper/lawrence-hill-a-cultural-and-spiritual-descendant-of-west-african/) Afua Cooper > [“Historians who explore slavery's relationship to capitalism generally focus on the roles that men played in the development of both. But if we considered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-e-jones-rogers/historians-who-explore-slavery-s-relationship-to-capitalism-generally/) Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers > [“American Slavery, American Freedom,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-levy/american-slavery-american-freedom/) Andrew Levy [Browse all 45 American slavery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-slavery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“African slavery lacked two elements that made American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history: the frenzy for limitless profit that comes from capitalistic agriculture; the reduction of the slave to less than human status by the use of racial hatred, with that relentless clarity based on color, where white was master, black was slave.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that-made-american-slavery-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American slavery" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that-made-american-slavery-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da5/howard-zinn-576_quote_african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that_1930490.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“African slavery lacked two elements that made American slavery the most cruel form of slavery in history…” — Howard Zinn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“African slavery lacked two elements that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that-made-american-slavery-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/african-slavery-lacked-two-elements-that-made-american-slavery-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```