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DetlefK

(16,423 posts) Thu Jun 25, 2015, 04:55 AM Jun 2015

SC curriculum: Slaves were a necessity because only they had the skills to grow rice

http://thinkprogress.org/education/2015/06/24/3673587/teach-history-slavery-south-carolina/

Excerpt:

"Although some of the lesson plans on the website mentioned the horrible circumstances in which slaves lived, the way slavery and slaves were described uses a lot of passive voice and describes why certain African slaves were chosen to do plantation work, as if Europeans would have done the work themselves had they possessed the skills. One of the lesson plans posted on the Teaching U.S. History in South Carolina page explains why West African slaves were chosen:

“Due to the omission of this crop in their European culture, English colonists who settled the rich North American land lacked the expertise required for the production of rice. Thus, the huge task of cultivating, processing, and packaging rice on South Carolina Plantations was commonly assigned to slaves. This task, though foreign to European colonists, proved to be quite common to the slaves who had been purposely imported from the rice growing region of West Africa. Where many English planters had failed in their previous attempts at growing and processing rice, the knowledge and rice-growing skills possessed by West Africans gave them a newfound success at cultivating the crop.”"

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Because there was no way to ask a chinese or spanish or italian rice-farmer for advice... Or to consult botanic textbooks...

5 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

SC curriculum: Slaves were a necessity because only they had the skills to grow rice (Original Post) DetlefK Jun 2015 OP

Or to pay salaries to free black workers. That must not have been an option either. n/t pnwmom Jun 2015 #1

Was commonly 'assigned' to slaves.............. SamKnause Jun 2015 #2

And it is stated 3 times in that excerpt. dixiegrrrrl Jun 2015 #3

One lie always leads to another malaise Jun 2015 #4

oh I see... Locrian Jun 2015 #5

pnwmom

(109,026 posts)

1. Or to pay salaries to free black workers. That must not have been an option either. n/t

Reply to DetlefK (Original post)

Thu Jun 25, 2015, 05:02 AM

Jun 2015

SamKnause

(13,114 posts)

2. Was commonly 'assigned' to slaves..............

Reply to DetlefK (Original post)

Thu Jun 25, 2015, 05:29 AM

Jun 2015

Like they were given any choice in their 'assignments'.

Like they were given any choice in being held captive.

The lies and distortions being taught in our schools are appalling.

Maybe if the truth was taught about the indigenous people's of the U.S.

and African Americans, racism wouldn't be continually rearing its ugly head.

dixiegrrrrl

(60,010 posts)

3. And it is stated 3 times in that excerpt.

Reply to DetlefK (Original post)

Thu Jun 25, 2015, 06:30 AM

Jun 2015

Makes it sound as if only rice farmers were kidnapped and sold.

malaise

(269,352 posts)

4. One lie always leads to another

Reply to DetlefK (Original post)

Thu Jun 25, 2015, 06:38 AM

Jun 2015

all lies all the time

Locrian

(4,522 posts)

5. oh I see...

Reply to DetlefK (Original post)

Thu Jun 25, 2015, 07:25 AM

Jun 2015

It was more like a business *partnership* - and they obviously must have enjoyed working for such a wonderful slave (er, I mean) business owner. I wonder if they got stock options?

Of course how much a slave sold for was just a smart way of placing a dollar value on their expertise and skill right? It's sort of like how CEO's are valued by how many millions they are "worth" right?

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