[Florida would have students believe that enslaved Black people
“benefited” by developing skills during slavery; the reality is
that enslaved Africans contributed to the nation’s social, cultural
and economic well-being using skills they had already.]
[[link removed]]

PORTSIDE CULTURE

FLORIDA’S ACADEMIC STANDARDS DISTORT THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT
ENSLAVED AFRICANS MADE TO AMERICAN SOCIETY  
[[link removed]]


 

Rodney Coates
August 14, 2023
The Conversation
[[link removed]]


*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

_ Florida would have students believe that enslaved Black people
“benefited” by developing skills during slavery; the reality is
that enslaved Africans contributed to the nation’s social, cultural
and economic well-being using skills they had already. _

,

 

The state of Florida ignited a controversy when it released a set of
2023 academic standards that require fifth graders to be taught that
enslaved Black people in the U.S. “developed skills which, in some
instances, could be applied for their benefit.”

As a researcher specializing in the history of race and racism in the
U.S., I – like a growing chorus of critics – see that education
standard as flawed and misleading.

Whereas Florida would have students believe that enslaved Black people
“benefited” by developing skills during slavery, the reality is
that enslaved Africans contributed to the nation’s social, cultural
and economic well-being by using skills they had already developed
before captivity. What follows are examples of the skills the Africans
brought with them as they entered the Americas as enslaved:

1. As farmers

During the period between 1750 and 1775, the majority of the enslaved
Africans that landed in the Carolinas came from the traditional
rice-growing regions in Africa known as the Rice Coast.

Don’t let yourself be misled. Understand issues with help from
experts

Subsequently, rice joined cotton as one of the most profitable
agricultural products, not only in North Carolina and South Carolina
but in Virginia and Georgia as well.

Other African food staples, such as black rice, okra, black-eyed peas,
yams, peanuts and watermelon, made their way into North America via
slave ship cargoes.

Ship captains relied on African agricultural products to feed the 12
million enslaved Africans transported to the Americas through a brutal
voyage known as the Middle Passage. In some cases the Africans stowed
away food as they boarded the ships. These foods were essential for
the enslaved to survive the harsh conditions of their trans-Atlantic
trip in the hulls of ships.

Once on plantations in the land now known as the United States,
enslaved people occasionally were able to cultivate small gardens. In
these gardens, reflecting a small amount of freedom, enslaved men and
women grew their own food. Some of the crops consisted of produce
originating in Africa. From these they added unique ingredients, such
as hot peppers, peanuts, okra and greens, to adapt West African stews
into gumbo or jambalaya, which took rice, spices and heavily seasoned
vegetables and meat. These dishes soon became staples in what would
become known as down-home cooking. Crop surpluses from the communal
gardens were sometimes sold in local markets, thus providing income
that some enslaved people used to purchase freedom. Some of these
African-derived crops became central to Southern cuisine.

2. As cooks and chefs

The culinary skills that the West Africans brought with them served to
enhance, transform and produce unique eating habits and culinary
practices in the South. Although enslaved Africans were forced to cook
for families that held them as property, they also cooked for
themselves, typically using a large pot that they had been given for
the purpose.

Using skills from various West African cultures, these cooks often
worked together to prepare communal meals for their fellow enslaved
people. The different cooking styles produced a range of popular meals
centering on one-pot cooking to include stews or gumbos, or layering
meat with greens. The meals comprised a high proportion of corn meal,
animal fat and bits of meat or vegetables. Communal gardens,
maintained by the enslaved, might supplement the meager supplies and
what was available from hunting or fishing. Some of the cooks who
emerged from these conditions became some of the highest regarded and
valued among the enslaved in the regions.

Enslaved chefs blended African, Native American and European
traditions to create unique Southern cuisines that featured roasted
beef, veal, turkey, duck, fowl and ham. Desserts and puddings featured
jellies, oranges, apples, nuts, figs and raisins. Stews and soups
changed, given the season, sometimes featuring oysters or fish.

3. As artisans and builders

Slave ship manifests reveal that enslaved Africans included some who
were woodcarvers and metalworkers. Others were skilled in various
traditional crafts, including pottery making, weaving, basketry and
wood carving. These crafts were instrumental in filling the perpetual
scarcity of skilled labor on plantations.

When planters and traders considered purchasing an enslaved Black
person, one of the key factors influencing their decision and the
price was their skills. Slave auction sales included carpenters,
blacksmiths and shoemakers.

Architectural designs showing West African influences have been
identified in structures excavated from some colonial plantations in
various areas of the South Carolina Lowcountry. These buildings, with
clay-walled architecture, demonstrate that the West Africans came with
building skills. Excavated clay pipes in the Chesapeake region reveal
West African pottery decorative techniques.

Across the nation, multiple landmarks were built by the enslaved.
These include the White House, the U.S. Capitol and the Smithsonian
Castle in Washington, Fraunces Tavern and Wall Street in New York, and
Fort Sumter in South Carolina.

4. As midwives, herbalists and healers

As Africans entered the Americas, they brought knowledge of medicinal
plants. Some enslaved women were midwives who used medical practices
and skills from their native lands. In many cases, while many of these
plants were unavailable in the Americas, enslaved Africans’
knowledge, and that gleaned from Native Americans, helped them to
identify a range of plants that could be beneficial to treat a wide
range of illnesses among both the enslaved and the enslavers. Enslaved
midwives delivered babies and, in some cases, provided the means for
either avoiding pregnancies or performing abortions. They also treated
respiratory illnesses.

These practices and knowledge grew as they began incorporating
techniques from Native American and European sources. They employed an
interesting array of these practices to identify herbs, produce
devices and to facilitate childbirth and maternal health and
well-being. They utilized several herbal remedies such as cedar
berries, tansy and cotton seeds to end pregnancies.

In 1721, of the 5,880 Bostonians who contracted smallpox, 844 died.
Even more would have died had it not been for a radical technique
introduced by an enslaved person named Onesimus, who is credited with
helping a small portion of the population survive.

Onesimus, purchased by Cotton Mather in 1706, was being groomed to be
a domestic servant. In 1716, Onesimus informed Mather that he had
survived smallpox and no longer feared contagion. He described a
practice known as variolation derived by West Africans to fight
various infections.

This was a method of intentionally infecting an individual by rubbing
pus from an infected person into an open wound. Onesimus explained how
this treatment resulted in significantly milder symptoms, eliminating
the likelihood of contracting the disease. As physicians began to
wonder about this mysterious method to prevent smallpox, they
developed the technique known as vaccinations. Smallpox today has been
eradicated worldwide primarily because of the medical advice rendered
by Onesimus.

Regardless of how Florida’s education standards misrepresent
history, the reality is that the Africans forced to come to America
brought an enormous range of skills. They were farmers, cooks, chefs,
artisans, builders, midwives, herbalists and healers. Our country is
richer because of their skills, techniques and knowledge.

Chris Calimlim

Editorial Associate

* enslaved persons
[[link removed]]
* Racism
[[link removed]]
* Black History
[[link removed]]

*
[[link removed]]
*
[[link removed]]
*
*
[[link removed]]

 

 

 

INTERPRET THE WORLD AND CHANGE IT

 

 

Submit via web
[[link removed]]

Submit via email
Frequently asked questions
[[link removed]]

Manage subscription
[[link removed]]

Visit portside.org
[[link removed]]

Twitter [[link removed]]

Facebook [[link removed]]

 



########################################################################

[link removed]

To unsubscribe from the xxxxxx list, click the following link:
[link removed]