Slavery

Slavery used to be a major issue worldwide. Even in the 18th century, slavery was a heated discussion among the people of France. During the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, the National Assembly established the Declaration of the Rights of Man which stated "All men are born and remain free and equal in rights." People began to wonder if this declaration concerned the French colonies in the West Indies, which were supplied with slaves by French merchants. These slaves were used to work on sugar and coffee plantations and had no political rights. The views of those addressing the issue of slavery were either negative or positive, but both greatly affected the economic, political, and social order.

The viewpoints of the people during this time varied greatly. Many people were pretty much for slavery for economic and political reasons. Whites were hypocritical for having said that they represented the people of color (Doc.

Commemorative engraving of the bicentenary of the ...

Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of 17...

our changing social order

9/ Mirabeau). They went around saying that all men were equal but they never acted upon what they said. Though, there were some whites that really believed that all men were in fact equal. Those who did wondered why slaves were mistreated because of the color of their skin. It was part of nature and it's baffling why some whites couldn't accept that (Doc. 7/ Gouges). Blacks were no different from the whites; they were all human. They were certainly not objects that could just be traded off (Doc. 8/ Necker). The issue of slavery and its cruelties became widely known but not much was done to stop it.

Economically, there were more people for slavery than not. The reason being was probably because of losing trade if slavery was abolished. Many slaves worked in sugar mills, indigo and cocoa plantations renouncing their lives...