Please do not put Edward Ball in the class with all slaveholders in SC.
Remember that the Balls and the Austins and the Laurens were not just
slaveholders, but were slave traders who owned ships and paid the Africans
to kidnap their own people and sell them. Several SC slaveholders were in a
sense "married" to their slaves and acknowledged as much in their wills and
provided a good education for their children up North and land for their
mistress and never married a white woman.  This may offend some of the
Charlestonians, but, I think these were much more admirable than Edward
Ball.  I frankly found the book offensive.  Felicia
----- Original Message -----
From: Douglas/Ungaro 
To: 
Sent: Wednesday, October 13, 1999 8:09 AM
Subject: Re: Treason? And Slavery...


 Quoting an earlier post:
> ... Our forefathers told the citizens how they were to handle such
matters;
> to rid ourselves of them.
> Which is what the War for Southern Independence was all about, not
slavery.
> The Industrial Revolution was bringing slavery to an end.  It was over in
> Europe.  It would soon end in the Americas.
>
>     It amazes me that so many genealogy and Southern state lists are still
> debating slavery (usually in a rather strange way to my thinking), not to
> mention the Civil War Between the States (take your pick).  Don't both
> topics have their own lists? But that probably doesn't matter.  These
issues
> seem embedded - for some, unresolved - in our consciousness, as well as
our
> genealogy.
>
>    With regard to the post tidbit above, I would like to say - the end of
> African slavery in the Americas was not 'just around the corner'.  And
some
> related discussion - not only here - stops just short of debating the
status
> of Black people - whether some people 'like', 'approve of' us, or not,
etc.
> And often minimizes what Black chattel slavery was, and was about.  And as
> most of us on this list probably know, South Carolina is and will continue
> to be one of the most important regions in the U.S. and in the Americas
when
> it comes to getting the records straight on Slavery.  The information/
> records many South Carolinians still hold onto (and hopefully will share)
is
> crucial history.
>
>     Black chattel slavery in the Americas did not end until 1888, in
Brazil,
> by a decree of the Queen.  I think she snuck and did it while her father
was
> out of the country or something.  In Brazil in the 1880s, the Parliament
> (their Congress) was debating whether to extend African Brazilian slavery
> for another 50 YEARS, which - had this succeeded - would have continued it
> into the 1930s, and perhaps longer.
>
>     Cuba was the last country in the Caribbean, and the Spanish-speaking
> Americas, to abolish chattel slavery - in 1886.  They continue to deal
with
> their legacy, also.  And so do we, in the States and throughout the
> Americas.  And frankly, thanks to persons like Ed Ball of Charleston and
New
> York City ("Slaves in the Family"), I am optimistic some of us will make
the
> effort to 'work this history out'.
>
>     Thanks, Marian Douglas
>     Skopje, Macedonia
>
>
>
>
>
> >
>

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