"An estimated 645,000 Africans were imported into the United States between 1650 and 1808 as slave labor. They came primarily from sub-Saharan Africa's northwestern and middle-western coastal regions and worked under harsh conditions predominantly in the cash crop economy of the rural South. The slaves brought musical traditions from Africa with them."
Read More"In the book Blacking Up, Robert Toll describes minstrelsy as a way in which people could experience and come to terms with social issues of the time. His thesis assumes that the common depiction of blacks as the fool was a way for whites to come to terms with their own place and position in society. While most minstrel shows reinforce this idea, black minstrelsy (shows written and performed by black people) offers a different lens to view the time."
Read More"Minstrelsy emerged in the early 1800’s as the first distinctly American form of popular culture. While its content served to entertain audiences, it also worked to provide a means with which common Americans could learn about and understand the events occurring in their large and constantly evolving country."
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