History, Race, and Violence in the Arena of Reproduction Enslavement. :: Essays Papers

History, Race, and vehemence in the Arena of Reproduction Enslavement. In 1997, Dorothy Roberts wrote a salient carry titled Killing the Black Body Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty. Roberts explicates the crusade to avenge Black womenespecially the destitutefor having children. The exploitation of Black women in the U.S. began in the days of slavery and, appropriately enough, Roberts introduces her first chapter with an illustrative storyWhen rosebush Williams was sixteen years old, her master sent her to live in a cabin with a male slave named Rufus. It did not point that arise disliked Rufus cause he a bully. At first roseate thought that her role was just to perform household chores for Rufus and a fewer other slaves. But she learned the true nature of her assignment when Rufus crawled into her flap one night I puts , What you means, you fool nigger? He say for me to hush de mouth. Dis my bunk, too, he say. When travel fended off Rufuss sexual advances wit h a poker, she was report to Master Hawkins. Hawkins do it clear that she had no choice in the matter De nex day de massa call me and tell me, Woman, Is pay big money for you,and Is through digital audiotape for de cause I wants yous to raise me chillens. Is put you to live with Rufus for dat purpose. Now, if you doesnt want whippin at de stake, yous do what I wants.Rose reluctantly acceded to her masters demands I thinks bout massa buyin me offen de block and savin me from bein seprated from my folks and bout bein whipped at de stake. Dere it am. What am Is to do? So I cides to do as de massa wish and so I yields.The story of control of Black reproduction begins with the experiences of slave women like Rose Williams. Black procreation helped to sustain slavery, giving slave masters an frugal incentive to govern Black womens reproductive lives. Slave womens childbearing replenished the enslaved advertise force Black women bore children who belonged to the slave accepter from the moment of their conception. This feature of slavery made control of reproduction a central aspect of whites subjugation of African people in America. It marked Black women from the beginning as objects whose decisions around reproduction should be subject to social regulation rather than to their own will. (22-23)Once slavery was abolished Black people no longer had to mystify about their children being the property of slaveowners, or anyone else.