Final answer:
The claim that South Carolina was progressive in terms of racial advancement is false. Historical records show the state's heavy reliance on slavery and oppressive laws against Black people, contrasting any notion of enlightenment regarding colored advancement.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that South Carolina had a more enlightened attitude toward colored advancement than the rest of the state is false. Historical evidence shows that South Carolina was deeply involved in the slave trade and had laws that enforced the harsh treatment of enslaved peoples. In the period after the Stono Rebellion in 1739, South Carolina's economy heavily relied on the labor of enslaved Africans, whom they continued to import in large numbers. The state also had strict slave codes that limited the rights and mobility of enslaved persons.
Africans in South Carolina outnumbered Europeans by 1720 and they were predominantly used in arduous and unhealthy work conditions, especially in rice fields. Free Black people, when they did exist, often lived under the constant threat of being returned to slavery or facing severe limitations on their freedoms and rights. The economic prosperity of South Carolina was built on the institution of slavery, with laws reflecting the interests of wealthy slaveholders.