Essay On Slavery And Family

Imagine living a normal life, when suddenly a group of peculiar figures jump out of nowhere and kidnap you; the next thing you know is that you’re on a plantation thousands of miles away from your family. The pure torture that the slaves were faced with every single day made life almost unbearable, while their owners drilled the ideology of slaves being equal to property into society. However, being away from your family and friends was easily the worst part of slavery. Children were often separated from their parents and families were torn apart all over the United States. Despite all of the inhuman torment, the worthless mindset, and of course the depressing anguish felt by the victims, slavery was still thought of as an acceptable way of

It a major key in the success of cultures and often shows the roots of everybody’s beginnings. As they sprout and begin to grow into an individual, people are always grounded by their family. In the beginning of Roots, family can be seen everywhere, and is regarded as the one thing point that keeps everything in the village together, “Through this flesh, which is us, we are you, and you are us!” (Haley 56). Slavery then took the idea of family, and then butchered it in front of society. Families were disregarded when slaves were divided or sold onto plantation; some owners would purposely try to separate them because they didn’t want their slaves to be distracted when working, “Family separation through sale was a constant threat” (Williams). By removing the basis of family, slavery dehumanized millions of people. For some slaves, the only thing that kept them going was the hope that they may one day be reunited with their families. Unfortunately, this was not a common result as fathers and mothers were often sold and never see their children again. The fear of separation haunted families who were together and terrorized those that were faced with the split. In the end, even though the physical and mental pain of being a slave ravaged their spirits, the fact that they might never see their loved one again was the cruelest part of being a