By lunalatina1955 |

I hate to counter information that I have not double checked, and tripled
check. However, I feel compelled to comment regarding slavery in Mexico,
and Latin America, particularly African slaves.

I am a Fullbright, having studied in Africa. This was an amazing
experience, one filled with more questions, and one filled wishing to have a
multitude of lives to discover the many truths - such as all of us, as historians
who wish to know more about our ancestry.

In my fog of memories...during the many hours of education in African
universities, I thought I remembered that while Spain and Portugal may have been
the first to officially abolish slavery - it continued to exist south of
the equator (1819), as relates to African importation, particularly from
those areas in Africa that were south of the equator. So....while Ghana may
no longer have been involved, such nations as Angola and others continued
in the slave industry....endorsed by Spain, Portugal, and continued passage
into the U.S, as their port of entry was the Caribbean. Even the U.S.
civil rights and Britain's formal abolishment of slavery did not take effect
well into the early 1900's.

A movement regarding slavery had already begun....and technically, legally,
there existed a movement against the African importation of slaves. But
that doesn't mean a revolution had not already begun. And it did, in all
North American nations and colonies.....at different intervals.

One must consider the world powers at the time....each European nation was
trying to diminish their competitor's world power, all economically
dependent upon the conquered land and its' imported labor.

If I appear to ramble, I apologize....like others, the African diaspora was
a major interest in university studies as I had suspected my own heritage
based upon a myriad of factors, all of which were verified.

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Bernardino Verástique in Michoacán and Eden- Vasco de Quiroga and the Evangelization of Western Mexico discusses slavery at pp. 112-118 in the context of Quiroga's utopian plans.

He says that intitially the Catholic sovereigns intitially banned enslavement of the "Amerindians" in the Carribean phases, but that this was replaced by the ecomienda system.

Quiroga wrote treatises and arguments in response to the pro-slavery
argument. The pro-slavery argument was that the Indios were "rescued" by the Spanish, when they were converted, and enslavement was a legal way to repay the
implied ransom.

Daniel,
I disagree with 1920 as the date when slavery was abolished in Mexico. It happen much earlier. I found an interesting site on slavery by a group at the University of Barcelona ( http://www.cedt.org ) that includes a useful chronology on the subject ( http://www.cedt.org/crono.htm ). Mexicans generally accept that slavery was abolished by Father Hidalgo in 1810. However, actual abolishment did not happen until 1821 with Mexico's Independence from Spain, but it only applied to the people born in Mexico (thus, I guess slaves could still be imported). Slavery was abolished in all forms by decree (the third of its kind) by President Vicente Guerrero in 1829, although it was was not incorporated into law until the new Constitution of 1857.
Evidence in favor of the earlier abolishment of slavery comes from Church records. I have not been able to find any reference to the status of slavery in any christening, wedding or burial after 1821 (at least in Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Coahuila and Nuevo Leon). This followed closely a decree by Father Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon that instructed that no distinction of race should be made in any of these records. Thus, while there may not have been written law, the effect was the same.
Now lets remember, that slavery of Indians was abolished much earlier (XVI century). In fact, several Conquistadors were subject to the Spanish Inquisition for slaving Mexican indigenous people in violation of Royal decree.

"La Corona hispana, atendiendo estas voces, prohibe desde el principio la esclavización de los indios en reiteradas Cédulas y Leyes reales (1523, 1526, 1528, 1530, 1534, Leyes Nuevas 1542, 1543, 1548, 1550, 1553, 1556, 1568, etc.), o la autoriza sólamente en casos extremos, acerca de indios que causan estragos o se alzan traicionando paces -caribes, araucanos, chiriguanos-. En 1530, por ejemplo, en la Instrucción de la Segunda Audiencia de México, el Rey prohibe la esclavitud en absoluto, proceda ésta de guerra, «aunque sea justa y mandada hacer por Nos», o de rescates (+Castañeda 59-60)."

Jaime Alvarado

To everyone in the group, slavery was abolished on Dec. 6th 1810 in the City-Hall at Guadalajara, Jalisco. That is the true although it was included untill 1857 Constitution

LIC. ALESSANDRO VITELA

Ser de Luz!!!

> Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 03:36:03 +0000
> From: alvaradj@comcast.net
> To: research@nuestrosranchos.org
> Subject: Re: [Nuestros Ranchos] Padre Miguel Hidalgo and slavery
>
> Daniel,
> I disagree with 1920 as the date when slavery was abolished in Mexico. It happen much earlier. I found an interesting site on slavery by a group at the University of Barcelona ( http://www.cedt.org ) that includes a useful chronology on the subject ( http://www.cedt.org/crono.htm ). Mexicans generally accept that slavery was abolished by Father Hidalgo in 1810. However, actual abolishment did not happen until 1821 with Mexico's Independence from Spain, but it only applied to the people born in Mexico (thus, I guess slaves could still be imported). Slavery was abolished in all forms by decree (the third of its kind) by President Vicente Guerrero in 1829, although it was was not incorporated into law until the new Constitution of 1857.
> Evidence in favor of the earlier abolishment of slavery comes from Church records. I have not been able to find any reference to the status of slavery in any christening, wedding or burial after 1821 (at least in Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Coahuila and Nuevo Leon). This followed closely a decree by Father Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon that instructed that no distinction of race should be made in any of these records. Thus, while there may not have been written law, the effect was the same.
> Now lets remember, that slavery of Indians was abolished much earlier (XVI century). In fact, several Conquistadors were subject to the Spanish Inquisition for slaving Mexican indigenous people in violation of Royal decree.
>
> "La Corona hispana, atendiendo estas voces, prohibe desde el principio la esclavización de los indios en reiteradas Cédulas y Leyes reales (1523, 1526, 1528, 1530, 1534, Leyes Nuevas 1542, 1543, 1548, 1550, 1553, 1556, 1568, etc.), o la autoriza sólamente en casos extremos, acerca de indios que causan estragos o se alzan traicionando paces -caribes, araucanos, chiriguanos-. En 1530, por ejemplo, en la Instrucción de la Segunda Audiencia de México, el Rey prohibe la esclavitud en absoluto, proceda ésta de guerra, «aunque sea justa y mandada hacer por Nos», o de rescates (+Castañeda 59-60)."
>
>
> Jaime Alvarado
>

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