DOCSLIB.ORG

A Persistent Legacy of Slavery

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A Persistent Legacy of Slavery A PERSISTENT LEGACY OF SLAVERY Ending the Subminimum Wage for Tipped Workers as a Racial Equity Measure AUGUST 2020 One Fair Wage The UC Berkeley Food Labor Research Center IN 2020, both the COVID-19 pandemic and the uprisings for racial justice catalyzed by the police murder of George Floyd illuminated the repression, precarity, and exclusion facing people of color, particularly Black people, through- out U.S. society. This year has brought to the forefront three major sources of violence and harm to Black com- munities and communities of color more generally: police violence, health inequities and economic precarity. The PLEASE NOTE: nexus of these three forces is acutely felt by one of the This report, based both on largest workforces in the country — tipped service workers. government data and recent surveys and interviews with restaurant Women and people of color disproportionately comprise the tipped workers across the country during service sector, the largest share of which comes from the restaurant the COVID-19 pandemic, updates industry. The restaurant industry is one of the largest and fastest our recent report on the New York growing industries and also the lowest paid, with more than 13 mil- race and gender pay gap in the lion restaurant workers and 6 million tipped workers nationwide.1 restaurant industry by comparing Indeed, eight of the 15 lowest-paid occupations are restaurant jobs, 2 the same pay gap between Black seven of which are tipped. As COVID-19 forced the closure of thou- women and white men in restaurant sands of restaurants nationwide, as well as other tipped personal dining floors in all states with service occupations such as nail salon, car wash, airport and parking attendants, and tipped gig workers, this workforce plummeted even significant Black populations, and deeper into poverty and financial insecurity. by combining surveys of workers from multiple states to understand These workers’ low pay is a result of the subminimum wage for the current experience of service tipped workers, a legacy of slavery that emerged during the era workers of color nationwide. following Emancipation to exploit recently freed people, particu- larly Black women. This legacy continues today. In 43 states across the country, tipped workers, still subject to a subminimum wage by law, are twice as likely to live in poverty and rely on food stamps then the general workforce.3 Tipped workers in these states also suffer from twice the rate of sexual harassment compared to the seven states that offer a full wage with tips on top.4 These statistics are worse for tipped workers of color. Workers of color experience poverty at more than twice the rate of white restaurant workers.5 Focusing particularly on the restaurant industry, government data shows that 45% of res- taurant workers are people of color and the majority are women,6 largely employed in casual restaurants where wages, and more importantly, tips, are limited. To further illustrate this point, additional national research shows that only 22% of people of color and 43% of women 1 are employed in the highest paying front of house positions in fine dining.7 It is this overcon- centration of workers of color and women in casual restaurants and under concentration in high paid fine dining positions that is leading to a large race and gender wage gap, particu- larly between Black women and white men. This report, based both on government data and recent surveys and interviews with restaurant workers across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic, updates our previous report on the New York race and gender pay gap in the restaurant industry by comparing the pay gap between Black women and White men in restaurant dining floors in all states with significant Black popula- tions, and the current experience of workers of color nationwide. Our updated findings indicate that: 1 The national race and gender wage gap between tipped restaurant workers who are white men and Black women stands at $4.79. However, New York and Massachusetts trail only Alabama with the highest race and gender wage gaps in the nation, at $7.74 and $7.79 respectively. As self-proclaiming progressive leader states on race, Massachusetts and New York allow a race and gender wage gap in the restaurant industry that is 60% worse than the rest of the nation, a reality that has been ex- acerbated by the subminimum wage for tipped workers. This already-existing disparity is now being felt profoundly when these workers are being asked to return to work for a subminimum wage and far less in tips. 2 The subminimum wage for tipped workers and this race and gender pay gap have resulted in a horrific experience for Black tipped workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Combined survey data from multiple states indicates that 72% of Black tipped service workers reported experiencing barriers with regard to accessing unemployment insurance, 95% of Black tipped service workers reported being unable or unsure whether they could afford their rent or mortgage, and 84% percent of Black workers reported only being able to afford groceries for 2 weeks or less — all at much higher rates than their white counterparts. 3 Workers being asked to return are facing both grave health risks and a subminimum wage for tipped workers when the majority of tipped workers surveyed from multiple states report that their tips are down at least 50%. This impact will be felt most by workers of color, who because of customer bias earn less in tips to begin with. We document how these inequities for people of color, and women of color in particu- lar, are caused by both the subminimum wage for tipped workers and race and gender segregation in the service sector. As the economy re-opens and workers are forced to resume potentially dangerous occupations or lose their unemployment insurance, many will see deeply reduced incomes. Limited restaurant capacity, plummeting tipping rates and customers who refuse to comply with health protocols leave many tipped service workers’ lives and livelihoods at grave risk. With so many futures on the line, it is more clear than ever that we must eradicate the subminimum wage for tipped workers and pass One Fair Wage legislation. This legislative change as well as government programs that incentive new corporate policies and practices to end racial and gender discrimination create the clearest pathway to ensure the lives of Black workers, women and all workers are truly valued and protected. 2 { I } THE RESTAURANT SECTOR’S RACE AND GENDER WAGE GAP KEY FINDING › Trailing only Alabama, Massachusetts and New York claim the worst race and gender wage gaps in the country between white men and Black women working in restaurant dining floors. With near equivalent wage gap around $7.75, this means that Black women in the industry in these two states are earning just 60% of what white men earn.8 The subminimum wage allows employers in 43 states to pay workers below the state’s set hourly minimum wage, forcing employees to make up their remain- ing wages based on tips. This policy is a direct legacy of slavery. At the time of Emancipation, restaurant industry leaders sought to hire newly-freed slaves, mostly Black women, for little to no pay, instead forcing people to rely on tips. The original concept of tipping, which originated from Europe, always required tips as a bonus on top of a wage, never as a replacement. The restaurant in- dustry nevertheless seized upon this mutation and incorporated the tipped wage into the nation’s first minimum wage laws, thus allowing workers to be paid primarily through customer tips. Due to decades of continued lobbying by the National Restaurant Association, the federal subminimum wage remains trapped at only $2.13 an hour for tipped workers. Of the 43 states that allow for a subminimum wage for tipped workers, only 28 of these states have instituted state subminimum wages above $2.13, and the majority still offer protections of less than $5 an hour.9 The subminimum wage for tipped workers disproportionately impacts workers of color and women. Today, 41% of all tipped workers are people of color.10 Women are also overrepre- sented in the tipped worker sector, where over 66% of tipped workers are women and 37% are mothers.11 Race and gender inequities are rampant throughout the tipped service sec- tor, particularly in restaurants, which claim the largest share of tipped workers. According to analysis of government data in all US states with sufficient populations of Black restaurant workers to make statistically significant comparisons, New York and Massachusetts trailed only Alabama in claiming the highest race and gender wage gaps in the country between tipped restaurant workers who are white men and Black women.12 With a wage gap of $7.74 and $7.79 respectively, this means that Black women in the industry are earning just 60% of what white men earn.13 In fact, the New York and Massachusetts race and gender wage gaps are 60% worse than the nationwide race and gender wage gap. 3 . These race and gender pay inequities are a direct result of three factors. The first is that women and Black and brown people of color, particularly women of color, are overrepre- sented in lower paid sectors of the industry, such as casual dining establishments like Denny’s and Applebee’s, instead of fine dining restaurants in which tips are significantly higher. The second is that the few workers of color who gain entry into fine dining restaurants experi- ence greater levels of occupational segregation between higher and lower paid positions in the ‘front of the house’ (dining room and supervising staff), which we call Tier I and Tier II positions respectively.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • SEA Fact Sheet
    WHAT IS THE SEA PROGRAM? The Self-Employment Assistance (SEA) program offers qualifying dislocated workers the opportunity for early re-employment through self-employment. The program is designed to encourage and enable unemployed workers to create their own jobs by starting their own small businesses. States operating an SEA program can pay an SEA allowance, instead of regular unemployment insurance benefits, to help unemployed workers while they are establishing businesses and becoming self-employed. Participants receive weekly allowances while they are getting their businesses off the ground. ELIGIBILTY REQUIREMENTS To receive these benefits, an individual must first be eligible to receive regular unemployment insurance under State law. Indiviuals who have been permanently separated from their previous employment and are identified as likely to exhaust regular unemployment benefits are eligible to apply for the program along with other program requirements as designated by the state. Individuals who are found eligible for SEA must engage in full-time self-employment activities in accordance with the state’s SEA program - including entrepreneurial training, business counseling, business plan development, etc. APPLICATION PROCESS SEA is a voluntary state program. To date, there are five SEA states. For more information on each state’s SEA program and requirements, visit the state’s UI agency’s website. } Delaware (Note: See agency “Contact” instructions to obtain SEA program information) } Mississippi } New Hampshire } New York } Oregon ADDITIONAL SEA INFORMATION You can obtain additional SEA information through the Self-Employment Assistance Center. The U.S. Department of Labor, in partnership with the Small Business Administration, created the Self-Employment Assistance Center to provide information, resources, and tools to help build state entrepreneurial programs for individuals eligible for Unemployment Insurance compensation.
    [Show full text]
  • Sample Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement
    KASAI UK LTD Gender Pay Report At Kasai we are committed to treating our people equally and ensuring that everyone – no matter what their background, race, ethnicity or gender – has an opportunity to develop. We are confident that our gender pay gap is not caused by men and woman being paid differently to do the same job but is driven instead by the structure of our workforce which is heavily male dominated. As of the snapshot date the table below shows our overall mean and median gender pay gap and bonus pay based on hourly rates of pay. Difference between men and woman Mean (Average) Median (Mid-Range) Hourly Pay Gap 18.1% 20.9% Bonus Pay Gap 0% 0% Quartiles We have divided our population into four equal – sized pay quartiles. The graphs below show the percentage of males and females in each of these quartiles Upper Quartiles 94% males 6% females -5.70% Upper middle quartiles 93% male 7% females -1.30% Lower middle quartiles 87% male 13% females 2.39% Lower Quartiles 76% male 24% females 3.73% Analysis shows that any pay gap does not arise from male and females doing the same job / or same level and being paid differently. Females and males performing the same role and position, have the same responsibility and parity within salary. What is next? We are confident that our male and female employees are paid equally for doing equivalent jobs across our business. We will continue to monitor gender pay throughout the year. Flexible working and supporting females through maternity is a key enabler in retaining and developing female’s talent in the future business.
    [Show full text]
  • Equality Works
    EQUALITY WORKS The Global Health 50/50 2019 Report The Global Health 50/50 initiative is hosted by the University College London Centre for Gender and Global Health. Global Health 50/50 was co-founded by Professor Sarah Hawkes1 and Dr Kent Buse.2 It is staffed with a dedicated team of researchers, strategists and communications experts working on a largely voluntary basis: Clara Affun-Adegbulu, Emily Blitz, Charlotte Brown, Tiantian Chen, Mireille Evagora-Campbell, Mairi Jeffery, Mikaela Hildebrand, Ruth Lawlor, Rebekah Merriman, Anna Purdie, Artricia Rasyid, Geordan Shannon, Ashley Sheffel, Sonja Tanaka and Laure-Anais Zultak. To minimise the potential for conflicts of interest, collective members affiliated with organisations reviewed by GH5050 are not engaged in reviewing or coding any institutional policies. The initiative is guided by a diverse independent Advisory Council3 to whom we are deeply grateful. Thanks to Ann Keeling for comments on the pay gap section, to Salvador Buse for support on statistical analysis, to Arjee Restar for research support, to Blossom for graphic design and Global Health Strategies for communications support. This report was supported by a grant from the Wellcome Trust [210398/Z/18/Z] ‘Global Health 50/50: Towards accountability for gender equality in global health’ #GH5050 @GlobalHlth5050 #GH5050AtWork www.globalhealth5050.org [email protected] [email protected] 1. Director, Centre for Gender and Global Health Institute for Global Health, University College London, UK 2. Chief, Strategic Policy Directions, UNAIDS, Switzerland 3. https://globalhealth5050.org/advisory-council/ EQUALITY WORKS The Global Health 50/50 2019 Report A review of the gender-related policies and practices of 198 global organisations active in health, with a special focus on gender equality in the workplace Contents Foreword 6 A word from the GH5050 collective 9 About this report 15 Glossary 18 PART I.
    [Show full text]
  • Equal Pay Legislation and the Gender Wage Gap
    A Service of Leibniz-Informationszentrum econstor Wirtschaft Leibniz Information Centre Make Your Publications Visible. zbw for Economics Polachek, Solomon W. Article Equal pay legislation and the gender wage gap IZA World of Labor Provided in Cooperation with: IZA – Institute of Labor Economics Suggested Citation: Polachek, Solomon W. (2019) : Equal pay legislation and the gender wage gap, IZA World of Labor, ISSN 2054-9571, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn, Iss. 16v2, http://dx.doi.org/10.15185/izawol.16.v2 This Version is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/206575 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. personal and scholarly purposes. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle You are not to copy documents for public or commercial Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, If the documents have been made available under an Open gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you genannten Lizenz gewährten
    [Show full text]
  • Religion of the South” and Slavery „ Selections from 19Th-Century Slave Narratives
    National Humanities Center Resource Toolbox The Making of African American Identity: Vol. I, 1500-1865 ON THE “RELIGION OF THE SOUTH” AND SLAVERY SELECTIONS FROM 19TH-CENTURY SLAVE NARRATIVES * In several hundred narratives, many published by abolitionist societies in the U.S. and England, formerly enslaved African Americans related their personal experiences of enslavement, escape, and freedom in the North. In straight talk they condemned the “peculiar institution” ⎯ its dominance in a nation that professed liberty and its unyielding defense by slaveholders who professed Christianity. “There is a great difference between Christianity and religion at the south,” writes Harriet Jacobs; Frederick Douglass calls it the “the widest, possible difference ⎯ so wide, that to receive the one as good, pure, and holy, is of necessity to reject the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked.”1 Presented here are four nineteenth-century African American perspectives on the “religion of the south.” Frederick Douglass “the religion of the south . is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes” I assert most unhesitatingly that the religion of the south ⎯ as I have observed it and proved it ⎯ is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes, the justifier of the most appalling barbarity, a sanctifier of the most hateful frauds, and a secure shelter under which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and most infernal abominations fester and flourish. Were I again to be reduced to the condition of a slave, next to that calamity, I should regard the fact of being the slave of a religious slaveholder the greatest that could befall me. For of all slaveholders with whom I have ever met, religious slaveholders are the worst.
    [Show full text]
  • Unemployment Benefits and Unemployment in the Great Recession: the Role of Macro Effects
    NBER WORKING PAPER SERIES UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS AND UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE GREAT RECESSION: THE ROLE OF MACRO EFFECTS Marcus Hagedorn Fatih Karahan Iourii Manovskii Kurt Mitman Working Paper 19499 http://www.nber.org/papers/w19499 NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH 1050 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02138 October 2013 We would like to thank Bob Hall, Sam Schulhofer-Wohl and seminar participants at Census Bureau, Edinburgh, EIEF, USC, Maryland, Penn State, UPenn, Princeton, Pompeu Fabra, Toulouse, UCL, UConn, Wisconsin, CUNY Graduate Center, Greater Stockholm Macro Group, Federal Reserve Banks of Cleveland, New York, and Philadelphia, 2013 conference on Macroeconomics Across Time and Space, 2013 SED, 2013 NBER Summer Institute (EFCE, EFMB, EFRSW groups), 2013 North American Summer Meeting of Econometric Society, 2013 Minnesota Workshop in Macroeconomic Theory, 15th IZA/CEPR European Summer Symposium on Labor Economics, Mannheim conference on \Financial Frictions and Real Economy," 4th Ifo Conference on "Macroeconomics and Survey Data", 2014 ASSA Meetings, 2014 NBER Public Economics Program Meeting and 2014 Cowles Foundation Summer Conference on \Structural Empirical Microeconomic Models" for their comments. We are especially grateful to June Shelp, at The Conference Board, for her help with the HWOL data. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York or the Federal Reserve System. Support from the National Science Foundation Grants No. SES-0922406 and SES-1357903 is gratefully acknowledged. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Federal Reserve System, or the National Bureau of Economic Research.
    [Show full text]
  • Slavery Past and Present
    fact sheet Slavery past and present Right: Slaves being forced below What is Anti-Slavery International? deck. Despite the fact that many slaves were chained for the voyage it The first organised anti-slavery is estimated that a rebellion occurred societies appeared in Britain in the on one out of every eight slave ships 1780s with the objective of ending that crossed the Atlantic. the slave trade. For many people, this is the image In 1807 the British slave trade was that comes to mind when they hear abolished by Parliament and it the word slavery. We think of the became illegal to buy and sell buying and selling of people, their slaves although people could shipment from one continent to still own them. In 1833 Parliament another and the abolition of the finally abolished slavery itself, trade in the early 1800s. Even if we both in Britain and throughout know little about the slave trade, the British Empire. we think of it as part of our history rather than our present. In 1839 the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society was created, In fact, the slave trade continues to representing a new organisation for have an impact today. Its legacies the new chapter of the anti-slavery include racism, discrimination Mary Prince struggle. It gave inspiration to the and the development and under- abolitionist movement in the United development of communities and “Oh the horrors of slavery! - States and Brazil, and contributed countries affected by the trade. How the thought of it pains my to the drawing up of international And slavery itself is not a thing of heart! But the truth ought to standards on slavery.
    [Show full text]
  • Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08): Current Status of Benefits
    Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08): Current Status of Benefits Julie M. Whittaker Specialist in Income Security Katelin P. Isaacs Analyst in Income Security March 28, 2012 The House Ways and Means Committee is making available this version of this Congressional Research Service (CRS) report, with the cover date shown, for inclusion in its 2012 Green Book website. CRS works exclusively for the United States Congress, providing policy and legal analysis to Committees and Members of both the House and Senate, regardless of party affiliation. Congressional Research Service R42444 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08): Current Status of Benefits Summary The temporary Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08) program may provide additional federal unemployment insurance benefits to eligible individuals who have exhausted all available benefits from their state Unemployment Compensation (UC) programs. Congress created the EUC08 program in 2008 and has amended the original, authorizing law (P.L. 110-252) 10 times. The most recent extension of EUC08 in P.L. 112-96, the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, authorizes EUC08 benefits through the end of calendar year 2012. P.L. 112- 96 also alters the structure and potential availability of EUC08 benefits in states. Under P.L. 112- 96, the potential duration of EUC08 benefits available to eligible individuals depends on state unemployment rates as well as the calendar date. The P.L. 112-96 extension of the EUC08 program does not allow any individual to receive more than 99 weeks of total unemployment insurance (i.e., total weeks of benefits from the three currently authorized programs: regular UC plus EUC08 plus EB).
    [Show full text]
  • Religion and the Abolition of Slavery: a Comparative Approach
    Religions and the abolition of slavery - a comparative approach William G. Clarence-Smith Economic historians tend to see religion as justifying servitude, or perhaps as ameliorating the conditions of slaves and serving to make abolition acceptable, but rarely as a causative factor in the evolution of the ‘peculiar institution.’ In the hallowed traditions, slavery emerges from scarcity of labour and abundance of land. This may be a mistake. If culture is to humans what water is to fish, the relationship between slavery and religion might be stood on its head. It takes a culture that sees certain human beings as chattels, or livestock, for labour to be structured in particular ways. If religions profoundly affected labour opportunities in societies, it becomes all the more important to understand how perceptions of slavery differed and changed. It is customary to draw a distinction between Christian sensitivity to slavery, and the ingrained conservatism of other faiths, but all world religions have wrestled with the problem of slavery. Moreover, all have hesitated between sanctioning and condemning the 'embarrassing institution.' Acceptance of slavery lasted for centuries, and yet went hand in hand with doubts, criticisms, and occasional outright condemnations. Hinduism The roots of slavery stretch back to the earliest Hindu texts, and belief in reincarnation led to the interpretation of slavery as retribution for evil deeds in an earlier life. Servile status originated chiefly from capture in war, birth to a bondwoman, sale of self and children, debt, or judicial procedures. Caste and slavery overlapped considerably, but were far from being identical. Brahmins tried to have themselves exempted from servitude, and more generally to ensure that no slave should belong to 1 someone from a lower caste.
    [Show full text]
  • Religion, Race, and Slavery in the Americas
    RELIGION, RACE, AND SLAVERY IN THE AMERICAS As part of the Department of Religion’s 2020-2021 series of events on race and the study of religion, these three virtual lectures will explore the connections among religion, race, and slavery in the early Americas. Lecture 1 Tuesday, February 9, 2021 @ 4:30 pm ET What to the Slave is Religion?: Women, Race, and Reproduction in the Definition of a Category A l e x i s W e l l s - O g h o g h o m e h Assistant Professor in the Religious Studies department at Vanderbilt University. A historian of African-American religion, her teaching and research examine the religiosity of enslaved people in the South, religion in the African Atlantic, and women’s religious histories. She received her B.A. in English from Spelman College, and Master of Divinity and Ph.D. from Emory University. Lecture 2 Wednesday, February 10, 2021 @ 4:30 pm ET Bearing the Burden of Ownership: Slavery, Religion, and the University A l p h o n s o F . S a v i l l e , I V Postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Georgetown University. A scholar of American religious history, his teaching and research interests include American religious history, slavery and religion in America, and leadership development for faith and community leaders. He earned his B.A. at New York University, an M.A. at Memphis Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Emory University. Lecture 3 Tuesday, February 23, 2021 @ 4:30 pm ET Spiritual Racialization: Theologies of Race and Slavery in the Colonial Atlantic World K e l s e y C h r i s t i n a M o s s Assistant Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California.
    [Show full text]
  • Unsafe and Underpaid How Sexual Harassment and Unfair Pay Hold Women Back
    Unsafe and Underpaid How Sexual Harassment and Unfair Pay Hold Women Back Andrea Flynn PUBLISHED AUGUST 2020 About TIME’S UP Foundation The TIME’S UP™ Foundation insists upon safe, fair, and dignified work for all by changing culture, companies, and laws. We enable more people to seek justice through the TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund™. We pioneer innovative research driving toward solutions to address systemic inequality and injustice in the workplace through the TIME’S UP Impact Lab. And we reshape key industries from within so they serve as a model for all industries. The TIME’S UP Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. TIME’S UP FOUNDATION | AUGUST 2020 1 About the Author Andrea Flynn researches and writes about gender, race, health,and economic inequality. She was formerly a fellow and the Director of Health Equity at the Roosevelt Institute, and is the incoming director of the Research and Action Hub at the Institute for Women's Policy Research. She is the co-author of The Hidden Rules of Race (Cambridge University Press, 2017). Her writing on the race and gender dimensions of economic inequality, reproductive health and justice, and health equity has appeared in The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The New Republic, Time, Teen Vogue, and Cosmopolitan. Andrea teaches courses on reproductive and sexual health and economic inequality at the Mailman School for Public Health at Columbia University. She received her MPA and MPH from Columbia University. You can follow Andrea on Twitter @dreaflynn. Acknowledgements The author would like to thank Jae Aron, Amy Castro Baker, Jessica Forden, Rebecca Goldman, Amanda Harrington, Matthew Hughes, Angie Jean-Marie, Devan King, Jennifer Klein, LaShawnda Lindsay-Dennis, Rakeen Mabud, and Tina Tchen for their comments, insights, and support.
    [Show full text]
  • Ancient Slavery & Modern Ideology
    5) ANCIENT SLAVERY AND MODERN IDEOLOGY^ M. I. FINLEY o THE VIKING PRESS NEW YORK PREFACE Although slaves have been exploited in most societies as far back as any records exist, there have been only five genuine slave societies, two of them in antiquity: classical Greece and classiral Italy. This book is about those two societies, examined not in isolation but, in so far as that is meaningful, in comparison I with the other three (all in the New World), I consider how the I ancient slave societies came into being and how they were trans- I formed in the long process that brought about medieval feud- I alism; how slavery functioned within the ancient economy and I in ancient political systems, and how it was judged socially and I morally; what modern historians have made of ancient slavery, f and why. These topics are interwoven throughout: the book is I not arranged along conventional chronological lines but pur- p sues four major themes one at a time. In other words, although I the inquiry is both historical and historiographical, these 'lapters do not constitute a history of ancient slavery. Over the past twenty-five years, the study of slavery in the nited States, the Caribbean and Brazil has reached an tensity without precedent. The debate has often been bitter, id it has become a public debate, not merely an academic one. is clear why that should be so: modem slavery was black avery, and therefore cannot be discussed seriously without ipinging on present-day social and racial tensions. Obviously, icient Greek and Roman slavery has no such immediate sig- ficance.
    [Show full text]