When I was asked to answer the question "What characterizes American history and culture through the perspective of Lucas Douglass", I immediately think of slavery and how horribly these poor people were treated . The treatment of slaves in the United States varied widely depending on conditions, times, and places. During the time of Lucas Douglass in the 1840s, the treatment of slaves was generally characterized by violence, degradation, and ruthlessness. Whippings, rapes and executions were certainly commonplace during this period. Depending on the slave owner's rules, many slaves were denied any kind of freedom. This also included the right of slaves to learn to read and write. Many slave owners would deny these rights to their slaves to ensure that they did not develop desires that could lead to escape or rebellion. Most slave owners were very scared at the thought of a rebellion because slaves were very important to their economy and the well-being of their families. Many of them attempted to reduce the risk of rebellion by reducing the amount of exposure their slaves had to the world outside their plantations. By keeping their slaves away from exposure to the outside world, they could eliminate many of the possible dreams and/or desires that might arise from learning about the world outside of the slaveholders' plantation or farm. Slavery in the United States included frequent rape and sexual intercourse. abuse of slave women. Because of this, many slaves tried to fight back against the sexual attacks, and many of them died resisting, while others were left with both mental and physical scars from the attacks. According to the Boundless.com article, "The Treatment of Slaves in the United States," "since 1662 and the adoption of 'partus sequitu......half of the document......an inhumane and corrupt time of American history, however, slavery played a very important role in establishing the economy of our country. Yes, it was a terrible time for slaves and they were treated very inhumanely. Yes, the fact that slaves were beaten, raped and tortured was very immoral, but without them the United States would not be what it is today Slavery may have “ended” thanks to the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, but we all know it is not. true. African Americans may have been considered free, but they were still looked down upon as if they were not good enough simply because of the pigment of their skin. Even today, living in the 21st century, we still face the issues of racism it was certainly one of the most important elements in shaping American culture today.