3.
The Impact of the Atlantic Slave Trade on the New World
Whatever the effect of slavery on Africa, there can be no doubt that black slaves [enslaved Africans]
played a crucial part in the economic development of the New World, above all by making up for
shortages of labour. The arrival of Europeans in the Americas had brought diseases that decimated
[destroyed] local populations, which reduced the potential for securing labour from that source; and often
too few Europeans chose to migrate to the Americas to meet the demand for labour. This was particularly
true in Brazil and the Caribbean, where people of African origin became by far the largest section of the
population; it was also the case in parts of North America, although here white people outnumbered black
people.
Black slaves were especially important as a labour supply for the "plantation" agriculture that developed
in the New World, first in Brazil, and later in the Caribbean and the southern parts of North America. The
plantation system had begun in medieval times on Mediterranean islands such as Crete and Cyprus - it
was an unusually sophisticated form of agricultural operation for its day, producing sugar for the
international market at a time when most European agriculture concentrated on the basics of local
subsistence. But from its inception [beginning], it used slaves; and when plantations were set up in the
Americas, black slaves became the backbone of the workforce....
Source: Will Hardy, "The Slavery Business," BBC
Enduring Issue: a challenge or problem that has been debated or discussed across time. It is long
lasting and/or has affected a lot of people.
Enduring Issues List To Choose From: Human Rights Violations, Population Growth, Power,
Impact of Cultural Diffusion, Impact of Migration, Impact of Trade, Slavery or Other
1. Which Enduring Issues does this document make me think of and why, using evidence from the
document? Please quote the document.