Labor Systems, Gender, and Racial Inequalities

Labor Systems, Gender, and Racial Inequalities
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Labor Systems, Gender, and Racial Inequalities
How do labor systems relate to gender and racial inequalities in US history from the 1820s to 1920? Draw on at least two distinct labor systems to construct an argumentative essay exploring the relationship between the way people produce their material needs, on the one hand, and gendered and racialized forms of social inequality on the other. Note: though you must draw on at least two systems, be sure to connect those into a broader general argument.
The U.S. has a history that is tarnished and loaded with black spots. There are many events, eras, and situations that showed a dark picture of the United States. The U.S. was gradually building and becoming a major player in international politics. However, politics at home threatened to turn and eventually turned the country against each other. The Civil War represents the boiling point of the internal issue that the U.S. was grappling with in the 19th century. There were so many issues facing the country, and many of them were because of beliefs and stereotypes that were inculcated and passed down from one generation to the next. Labor systems, for example, promoted gender and racial inequality in the country but there were tendencies to rationalize the laws and beliefs that further condemned women and the African Americans. Two systems that were in place and were used to rationalize slavery and gender inequality were domestic ideology and the white slave trade. These two were different but similar in promoting inequality from a gender and racial standpoint. So, one may not be faulted to say that both women and the African American community suffered the same fate albeit from different standpoints. While white women could have been said to be free, they were not free because they were expected to live as per the wishes of the white men and this perfectly captures the plight of the African Americans. In both cases, the white man had the last say, and this paper thus seeks to contend or showcase that slavery was not specific to the African Americans but that it also included women.
The Declaration of Independence was quite clear: “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” These words were often the center of attention as it was not clear whether the words “all men” included slaves and women. For the latter, however, and especially white women, the inequality was not obvious because many were seen to be operating from the point of power. But this was not the case as many were tied down by societal expectations and thus never pursued happiness or anything that would have appeared outside the obvious. For the African Americans, the expectation was submission to one’s master, and while it was obvious compared to the plight of white women, there are similarities in both.
Firstly, there was the notion that both were “free” or better off continuing with life as it was than changing it. Slaves were not free, and the term free should not be miscons...