The Story We Tell: Pre-viewing Activity

Please answer BOTH of the following questions prior to our viewing Episode Two: The Story We Tell

> How long do you think the idea of race has been around? Where did it come from?

> Do you think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed inferior, or were they deemed inferior because they were enslaved?

27 thoughts on “The Story We Tell: Pre-viewing Activity

  1. I believe the idea or race has been around for along time. I believe it started when people of mainly white race wanted to put labels on different types of people that they came in contact with. I believe that African Americans where deemed inferior before they where enslaved making it a reason to why they where. White People thought that they did not have the same capability as the white race and made them into slaves. By African Americans being enslaved it clearly did not help the cause of the way people now around the world viewed them.

  2. I think the idea of race has been around since slavery. Slavery gave whites the idea that they were superior because of the color of their skin. I believe people were divided by religion, class, status and even language before slavery and “race”. I think Africans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved. I think white people saw an opportunity for financially growth, among other things, and took advantage, creating this superior and inferior view of whites and blacks.

  3. I think the idea of race has been in many civilization in many eras through out the history of mankind. Looking back to many past and ancient eras we know that racism did exist. But to me I think that it is a common psychology of human to judge and categorize people into races. I am not sure if the Africans were slaved because they were inferior or the other way around. But according to history to slavery I think that since the Africans were already slaves that’s why the Africans were deemed inferior.

  4. I believe the idea of race has been around for many many years. When people from different countries started to interact and mingle with one another that is when people put a title to skin color calling it race. This word could also date back to slavery when people put labels on others based upon the color of their skin.

    I believe that Africans were both enslaved because they were deemed inferior and I also believe they were deemed inferior because they were enslaved. I think that whites thought they were superior based off of the color of their skin which lead all others to be considered inferior. I believe this is where slavery started. I also believe that right after slavery ended Africans were still considered inferior due to the fact that they were slaves. The whites would still be considered superior even though slavery did not exist anymore. Still to this day some people belittle other cultures because of issues such as slavery that happened many years ago.

  5. How long do you think the idea of race has been around? Where did it come from?
    As I have read race has been used from the end of the century XVI as a way of clasification of the people according to several parameters that balones to people from differents geography territories.

    Do you think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed inferior, or were they deemed inferior because they were enslaved?

    I think the second option is what make more sense because if they were deemed inferior, they were not been to do hard work, where obviously force was needed. I dont know what is why they permited that that happened, maybe there were offered better life and were take by hoax. Then they did not have way how to escape from those bad people.

  6. I think that the idea of race has been around from many years. Even though not all the groups of people believe that everyone tends to categorize people in many different ways. Race has been around even before Slavery, but slavery was a common time in which race was more outstanding. During slavery it gave the whites the thought that they were superior because of the of their color. Being white meant getting an education, being wealthy, having more resources, and etc. Slavery and African Americans were inferior because of lack of resources, separation of family, fear of being raped or physically harmed, and more.

  7. The idea of Race has been around as soon as civilizations started dividing and conquering other civilizations. This allowed different civilizations to classify themselves and claim who is the superior race in the world at that time. I think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed to be the inferior race. This was mainly because of their color of their skin. This allowed the White man to take control as Africans as if they were property.

  8. The idea of race has been around for centuries. I believe race became an issue during the dominant time of slavery and slave trade in the earlier centuries. Blacks were enslaved because of their ability to endure hard work.
    African Americans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved.

  9. # How long do you think the idea of race has been around? Where did it come from?

    The concept of race has been around for long time. It started exists when the White people started to feel that they are the most powerful and they have the right to dominate over the other race. It just the superfluous thought of the White race that they are the one whom other race should obeyed.

    # Do you think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed inferior, or were they deemed inferior because they were enslaved?

    I believe Africans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved. I think White race has the sense that they have to use the African’s manpower to develop themselves and progressing their economic status. They create the distinction between the White and Africans to take the advantage of weakness of the Africans and made them to feel that they are there to be slave for White people.

  10. I think the idea of race has been around for a long time. It can be dated back to when the British colonized most of the world. Skin color was a huge contributor to the beginning of race. Race came from the individuals who believed to be superior to others.
    I think they were enslaved because they were deemed inferior. A lot of the slaves that were brought over to the America were tricked into slavery. Often times they were even given alcohol. Because they were seen as gullible it made Africans inferior. Apart from Africans being tricked into slavery, they were able to work well in high temperatures. So to the Americans they born for the job.

  11. The idea of the race has been around for many years. This is been used to show the difference between the White and Black. This human created classification are been established by the White race to take the benefit from the Black people. I think Africans were enslaved in the America because they were deemed to inferior. They wasn’t thinking themselves as smarter like the Whites and fall behind for the lack of knowledge as well as resources to develop their own economy.

  12. Race has been around since colonialism of the United States of America. It came from the colonist wanting to identify specifically the Africans the stole from Africa to provide free labor against their will. There has always been slavery and slaves. But never in all of history was there chattel slavery. A slavery which a people was taken from their country brought to another to work for free without any option of every being freed. A slavery which would last form generation to generation having their children wives and husbands stolen from them as well as tortured and massacred for nothing at all because they were considered property and a man can do what ever with his property as he so chooses.
    These stolen people were not deemed inferior because they were enslaved or enslaved because they were inferior at all. Inferiority is just what abusers tell themselves to justify their abuse… and use to mentally abuse the people of who they wish to control and convince them in a sick and twisted way to accept the abuse. If the abused does not or did not buy into this mind game then torture and murder was good enough incentive most of the time to get in line.

  13. I know race has been around for a centuries now but how long and where it came from, i would have to do some research to find out exactly. why everyone is put into races, that is something i am still trying to figure out, as for why Africans were enslaved, i would have to say it was because they were deemed inferior. They were enslave because of the color of their skin and culture or as white people of that time would put it they are savages.

  14. The idea of race arouse when many men of dark skin color were brought via the seas over to the Americas to become slaves. From that point on, the idea of white supremacy has been deemed as important. It came from the past in order to control men of dark skin color to become slaves and to brainwash others to believe that it is just. To answer the second question, they were deemed inferior because they were enslaved. Racism did not exist before slaves came into the Americas therefore it is just an ignorant idea to keep their precious advantages and riches over every other type of person in which they believe to be inferior.

  15. I believe the idea of race has been around for many centuries. Probably when Christopher Columbus” discovered” America and the time of slavery. Our society is known for labeling, which creates a separation or division. Race is a social construct development by whites. White race indicated being superior, powerful, having control, civilized, knowledge and separation. The idea came from very narrow minded white men that wanted to be superior with land, gold, wealth etc. Therefore, I believe that Africans were enslaved in America because they were deemed as inferior. They were deemed as inferior because they didn’t develop the idea of civilization first.

  16. race has been around for a long time. since race refers to person’s physical characteristics, such as bone structure and skin, hair, or eye color, one can say that race was there from the origin of man kind because Adam and eve had two different physical characteristic. race become a big issue later on, when man kind wants to advantage over one another. we were born equal and we should have the same civil right. black people are not inferior to the white. some people even mentioned that black were born to be slaved. inferiority is something that the white used to force black people to work hard labor for them. slavery plays a great role in racism. slavery first began in the north america colony of Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. the main reason was to growth crops as tobacco so America can grow their economy.

  17. I think the whole idea of race is a something modern. Something that came up straight from the America.The word “race” is associated with concept of the new world oder, where the superior race holds the power. Growing up in Europa, I have never experienced the actual meaning of word “race”. I never had to underestimate someones visual traits to assign him to specific category.
    I think Africans were deemed inferior, because they were enslaved. They were an easy target to white people, because of lack of resources and technology.

  18. The idea of race has been around for a very long time, I believe it came from different nationality migrated and ended up in the same location.I think Africans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved because the whites were superior and had control.

  19. The idea of race has been around for a very long time, I believe it came from different nationality migrated and ended up in the same location.I think Africans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved because the whites were superior and had control.

  20. I think the idea of race has been around for a long time or when people first met other people that look different from each other. I think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were enslaved in different countries which made them deemed inferior.

  21. I think that the idea of race is something that has been made up not to long ago. We try to categorize and label different looking people and we do this through characteristic / features. Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed inferior. Africans are not the first and only group of people that have been enslaved. Groups become enslaved because at the time they are deemed inferior, but with time the group fight back.

  22. I think the idea of race has been around for a long time, since the time slavery has been happening. I think the idea of race started when the transatlantic slave trade was happening. When slaves were not only being trade in Europe, but also in being trade off in the Americas. When people started viewing them as different than them self and started to discriminate them because they didn’t have no rights.
    Africans were deemed inferior because they were enslaved. Back when slavery was still not abolish slaves were discriminated and had no rights. Slave owners took advantage of them since they were a source of income meaning they wouldn’t have to pay a slave a salary for their work.

  23. I believe race has been around for many, many, many, years. It may have been not classified but it sure was being practiced in a way. To me race is just one of those things that have been around for so long that people don’t really notice it. i think it dates back to when colonization first began with the British.

    i think Africans were enslaved in the Americas because they were deemed inferior. Slave traders probably just viewed them as helpless people because when you looked at the rest of the world the light skins were kings and queens and duchess. But looking at the dark skins, they thought they can make them anything they want because they had nothing and didn’t hold such high positions in society. This goes back to the idea of how race played an important role in the enslavement of Africans.

  24. I believe that race has been around for a long time. from previous classes and knowledge i had i knew it came form a group of people with power whom tried to seperate them from others and where trying to see themselves as superior.
    i believe they where enslaved because they were deemed enferior and then where made into slaves and not the other day around because i believe the people with power tried to make them enferior so they can be more superior and have more control over them.

  25. I believe race has been around for hundreds of years. I think it once people started noticing that other people was different from them. They started to separate themselves into different groups. When people come to other nations they are instantly outcaste as someone who is not like them, so I think it started like that.
    African Americans were deemed inferior because the idea of slavery had already existed before Europeans reached the Americas. By the time the slave trade had started Africans were transported by boats suffering the worst conditions and cruel treatment. If Africans would have overthrown and enslaved the Europeans, today we would have been talking about white slavery. In other words, History has many loops that could have been different that even from ancient times no one can point to a specific person who started the idea of slavery. It is now only at this time that we can see that almost every culture, nationality or region has experienced slavery at one point in history

  26. I think the idea of race has been around for many centuries. It has been passed down from different generations and constructed in society. I think African Americans were enslaved because they were deemed inferior. African Americans were thought of as very different from other races and could not assimilate, therefore inferior.

  27. I believe race has been around for thousand years ago. The time that people tried to take land and money from another people as much as they could. Because they thought they were different race compare to another people. It was creating many wars in the past.
    I think Africans were deemed inferior, because they were enslaved. White people saw that fear and they were taking advanced. They were not only do that with Africans, White people did that with anybody. Looking back in the history, you see how they killed and took land of the Indian American. After those victories, they think they are superior and racism is really exist in their mind generation to generation.

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