Members of the jury it is now time for you to decide whether slaves were active or passive during slavery. Slaves lived in a time where the brutal and inhumane treatment of fellow human beings should not have been tolerated, nor allowed. The slaves had reacted in many ways to try and escape this type of treatment. Post presenting my evidence, it will clearly show that slave's actively resisted slavery such as running away, forming rebellions, making coded songs and even killing their own children.

We have read a lot of exhibits on slavery from both sides. We have read together how badly their masters or overseers as they were sometimes called, treated the slaves. But not one tells of a slave being happy and approving of their treatment. In exhibit #3 "The Universal Law of Slavery" by George Fitzhugh states "...the Negro race is inferior to the white race, and living in their midst, they would be far outstripped or outwitted in the chaos of free competition." Yet on the other hand in exhibit #1 "Follow the Drinking Gourd" a code song the slaves came up with and used to make their way to freedom, gives them directions, times, and meeting places for their escap

In exhibit #6 "A Slave Experience of Being Sold South" by Jacob Stroyer describes how slaves reacted when their family and friends were sold." He says slaves " who seemed willing at first, refused and were handcuffed together and guarded on their way to the cars by white men." Jacob Stroyer also said " Louisiana was considered as a place of slaughter, so those who were going did not expect to see their friends again." He goes on to tell how large crowds of them would leave the fields and walk four miles to see them off. Many of the slaves were only happy to leave there present residing because of their masters being so cruel. They were willing to take the chance of being resold to one even worse but hoping for one in the least somewhat better. Also, in exhibit #4 "Lay My Burden Down" tells of a slave who had her children taken from her at the age of just 1-2 years of age. It goes on to tell us that after all the heartbreak she could not stand to lose another child and said "I just decided I'm not going to let ol' master sell this baby; he just ain't going to do it." This woman killed her child because she had, had it and decided that not another of her children would be taken from her, and sold into slavery. Here both these exhibits clearly show that slaves were willing to give up family and friends in hope

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Approximate Word count = 887
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)