Page 7 - Debates on the Slave Trade
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Although some slave owners treated their slaves
humanely, most did not. Common punishments
included keeping slaves chained up and beating
them severely for even minor infractions.
rous and savage, labels that allow slaveholders and other whites to
treat him or her as less than human. Some slaveholders are decent
enough to treat their slaves as they would white servants—with at
least a minimal amount of kindness and compassion. But most
are abusive and inhumane to one degree or another.
The cruelties meted out by such masters include chaining
slaves for part or all of the day, forcing them to wear metal de-
vices that restrict normal movements, and severe beatings for
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