This is essentially an economic history of White racism in the United States since such racism is today largely explicable with reference to the legacy of wider, economic forces. By beginning with the slavery of the past, the book implicitly states that White racism is the theory; Black slavery, the practice.
The "peculiar institution" of race slavery began as a result of a need for social control. Poor whites could obtain the one right denied Blacks – the presumption of liberty – simply by being White. Whites' inevitable resentment at their poverty was thus easily deflected from their class oppressors onto Blacks - who were forced into slavery and thus shown as inferior by a process of self fulfilling, legalized prophecy; ie, racist 17th century laws. By protecting all Whites from slavery, Whites formed a united front against Blacks and a false unity among themselves. The Marxist perspective of this book posits an allegedly classless society where race substitutes for class and class enmities are excised from the mind to create unity of purpose among Whites.
Interestingly, indentured White servants were guinea pigs for slavery. The sexual exploitation of female servants, the whipping post, chains, branding irons, overseers and house servants were all mechanisms tried out and perfected on Whites. Without the support of poor and indentured servants among Whites, race slavery would have been impractical. What Blacks and poor Whites had in common – poverty and the Servant Trade – was emotionally eradicated by the creation of a White race (without biological foundation) to falsely distinguish Whites from Blacks & Indians; thereby avoiding indigent and servile rebellions among Whites. And these Whites became an intermediate social control stratum much like the middle class today acting as a buffer between the lower and upper classes of the West. (Moreover, Christians cannot enslave Christians under English common law at the time allowing Africans to be so enslaved, in principle, because they were not thereby protected.)
This highly detailed yet intensely readable guide seeks to address the gross evasions usually perpetuated by White historians on this all too important subject about the origins of Western culture. Unusually for a White author, this book also actually contains an objective definition of White racism. The very concept of a White Race is inherently oppressive since it allows Whites to see themselves as White first and human second – which can serve no other purpose than to further racist interests; otherwise, why bother?
Copyright © 2009 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute it in any format; provided that mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com/) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.
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