Final answer:
One's status as free or enslaved in Virginia depended on the status of their parents. The parents determined the status of an individual as free or enslaved in Virginia.
Step-by-step explanation:
In Virginia, one's status as free or enslaved depended on the free or enslaved status of their parents.
According to Virginia laws, children born to slave women inherited their mother's condition, regardless of the father's status. This means that if the mother was enslaved, the child would also be enslaved. These laws gave legal sanction to the enslavement of people of African descent and created strict racial barriers.
Therefore, the parents determined the status of an individual as free or enslaved in Virginia.