Question

Complete the paragraph about the contributions of Africans to the American colonies.

In the colonial era, most white colonists prevented enslaved Africans from (blank). Despite the restrictions, some Africans managed to express themselves individually. A notable example was (blank) who published a book of poems.

Answer 1

1. Reading and writing

2.Phillis Wheatley

Answer 2

During colonial times in America, particularly in Boston, The society was progressive, however, discrimination and the firm belief that africans were inferior still persisted.

In the colonial Boston, white society denied African Americans whether enslaved or free the access to education or even literacy except for religious instruction. It was believed that literacy was a direct threat to the institution of slavery for many reasons including but not limited to:

• Literacy granted slaves knowledge about other successful slave rebelions (e.g revolution in Haiti, the end of slavery in the British Empire)
• Literacy allowed them access to information such as The underground Railroad and other routes of escape.

Despite all of these obstacles, Africans learned to read and write thanks to effort of African American themselves and even clandestine schools which operated during this period, one notable example was the poet Phillis Wheatley whose most notable work is a book of poems called “Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral”