Slavery

Slavery was a deeply rooted institution in North America that remained legal in the United States until 1865. Here are some key points about slavery in the United States:

• Slavery in America was the legal institution of enslaving human beings, mainly Africans and African Americans.

• Slavery started in America since before its founding in 1776 and became the main cause behind the country’s bloody Civil War.

• The first Africans forced to work in the New World left from Europe at the beginning of the sixteenth century, not from Africa.

• The first voyage carrying enslaved people direct from Africa to the Americas probably sailed in 1526.

• Over the period of the Atlantic Slave Trade, from approximately 1526 to 1867, some 12.5 million captured men, women, and children were put on ships in Africa, and 10.7 million arrived in the Americas.

• The majority of enslaved Africans brought to British North America arrived between 1720 and 1780.

• Well over 90 percent of enslaved Africans were sent to the Caribbean and South America. Only about 6 percent of African captives were sent directly to British North America.

• The Emancipation Proclamation was passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 186545. The 13th amendment abolished slavery in the United States.

• It took the abolition movement, a civil war, and the ratification of the 13th amendment to end slavery1. However, these historical events did not end racism and descendants of enslaved people are still struggling with discrimination today.

This period of American history had a profound impact on the nation and continues to influence it today.