Slavery by another name essay sample

“ Slavery by Another Name” is a documentary about the brutality southern white men inflicted upon black people. These white men would still hold slaves in one form or another even after laws have been passed prohibiting the use of slaves. They tried to find ways to bypass the laws that have been passed the hold these slaves in their custody. The reason the south couldn’t let go of these slaves is because their economy relied heavily on the use of slaves. The south was doing very well economically because of free labor and once the amendment was passed, the south felt the economic troubles instantly. So, what these southern slave ringers did was they would find away around the law by creating their own state laws that would arrest blacks for little insignificant crimes. They would use these prisoners just like slaves except they are not called slaves, so the law is perfectly ok with it. These blacks were arrested for stupid misdemeanors such as talking loud in front of white lady, stealing a pig which is worth one dollar, and they were even arrested for absolutely nothing. A lot of these free black men would roam around the soft only to be stopped by slave ringers who would lie to them and say “ You owe me money”, and they would arrest these blacks with an official trial in court and they were sent straight to farms to work.

This was called peonage, not only was it peonage, it was fake as well. When the word spread to the north that the south was still practicing slavery and peonage, they sent many investigators down to the south to convict these slave ringers. Even though these slave ringers were convicted and sent to prison, the effect wasn’t as promising because they were only sent to prison for a few years. The government thought that only a few years was needed to scare the south from continuing their illegal practices. They were wrong, and peonage still continued. After continuous unsuccessful attempts, North America decided to keep a blind eye to the issue for some time. Slavery continued until the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt who put his foot on the problem and dealt with it and executed new laws that completely stopped peonage for whatever reason. A proper trial was required before the arrest of “ anyone”.