HIST 190 Lecture Notes - Lecture 17: Upland South, Nat Turner
Document Summary
Among the many forms of daily resistance was the formation of families. In the us, as slave importation made gender specific slavery illegal, a more natural balance between males and females slaves emerged which allowed for the formation of families. While the marriages were not recognized legally and required the masters" consent, many slaves chose to marry. Strong kinship networks developed, and many slaves strengthened these bonds by naming their children after next of kin. The disruption of slaves often meant that women or grandparents took on more central roles within family units. Only a few slaveholders took the formation of slave families to be part of their paternalistic responsibilities, and most viewed them as a potential nuisance if they recognized them at all. Slave sales were a market concern for slaveholders, not a familial one, and many families were broken up if it facilitated a sale. The potential for sale was also used as means of controlling slave populations".
