Final answer:
European racial theories largely justified the labor system depicted, fostering a race-based slave system linked closely with African ancestry in the New World.
Step-by-step explanation:
The labor system depicted here was justified largely by European racial theories. In the New World, especially in locations like Brazil, the Caribbean, and North America, a system of racially based slavery was established due to the high demand for labor in plantations growing cash crops like sugar, coffee, rice, and cotton. Enslaved Africans were deemed suitable for this labor-intensive work partly due to the prevalence of the slave trade, which provided a steady supply of labor, and partly due to emerging European racial ideologies that categorized Africans as inferior and thus fit for enslavement.
Racial theories became a cornerstone for justifying the differentiation and subjugation of people based on their ethnicity. These beliefs contributed to the development of a race-based slave system, which, unlike previous forms of servitude, linked slavery inextricably with African ancestry. Over time, racism was institutionalized in colonial legislation and social norms, reinforcing the economic and social structures of slavery.