ON THIS DAY: Aug. 18 Marks The Beginning Of Slavery In America

Kidnapped Africans were distinguished by race and exploited for free labor.

In late August 1619, the English privateer ship White Lion anchored at Point Comfort (modern-day Hampton, Virginia,) carrying a cargo of “20 and odd” captive Angolans. Exchanged with colony leaders for food and essential supplies, these individuals became the first documented Africans brought to English North America, who were then distinguished by race, enslaved, and exploited for free labor.