Unique

KA #2

Comparing Citizenships: Slavery, Indigeneity, and the American Government

Instructions: In the 21st Century, Historians have built digital exhibits where the public can access

historic documents online. For this KA, you will explore 3 of them: The Lowcountry Digital History

Initiative (which documents slavery in the Carolinas) and the Yale Avalon Project (which houses the

nation’s oldest federal laws and political documents.

Additionally, you will examine the Code Noir – meaning the Black Code in French. This document

consists of the laws produced by the French to govern slavery in their Caribbean colonies which

were/are: St. Domingue (Now Haiti), Guadeloupe and Martinique, Saint Barthelemy, Martinique,

Anguilla, Saint Lucia, and Saint Martin.

Finally, you will look at a compiled list of slave codes from NC. This document is housed at UNC

Chapel Hill’s DocSouth Digital Archive.

Submission Information:

Due Date: Monday, February 23rd, 2026 at 11:59pm
EST.

Submission Guidelines:

*Note: I know that you have a lot of readings to get
through. I have allotted two weeks for each of your
KAs. Please utilize your time wisely; pace yourself so
that you are not overwhelmed. Read a little each day;
give yourself time to think deeply about each of these
events in the context of all that we see today. Finally,
write passionately.

I am here if you need anything. Please visit my Tuesday
office hours if you need help.

Readings (Find them in the module):
1.) The Code Noir (The Black Code)
– This document describes the laws that restricted
slaves on islands colonized by France – like Haiti.
2.) Lowcountry Digital History Initiative:
I have posted the link to the first article in the
module, once you open that link, use the left
panel to find the other articles below.

• Contrasting Beginnings of Slavery in North
America (Single page length)

• English North America: Slave Societies vs Societies
with Slaves (Single Page length)

• Regional Labor Experiences: Sugar + Tobacco
(single page length)

• Rice in the Lowcountry (single page length)
• Barbadians in Carolina (single page length)

Point Values:
❑ Your Submission: 90 Points

– Organization, spelling, and
complete sentences will be
factored into your grade.

❑ In each section, I have outlined the
readings you will need to answer
the questions.

• American Indian Slavery in Carolina (single page
length)

3.) The Constitutional Convention (Video – 7 Mins)
4.) The US Constitution:

• The Preamble (Two sentence length)
• The Bill of Rights – First Ten Amendments

5.) The Declaration of the Rights of Man – 1789
6.) An Act Concerning Slaves and Free Persons of Colour
[North Carolina Slave Codes 1700-1880]

Directions:

Please note that each question must be answered in a minimum of 75 words; longer

questions need to be answered in paragraph formatting.

1.) The Code Noir:

a.) Choose 4 articles (articles are technically laws) from this document. Put the article into

your own words; then, analyze how the article shaped the life of the enslaved.

→ Use the organization below:

Article (Insert Number)

Summary: What does this article say in plain terms?

Analysis: What does it demand/prohibit/punish?

2.) Documents from the Digital History Initiative:

a.) Evaluate the map in the article “Contrasting Beginnings of Slavery in North America.”

→ List two things you glean from the map.

→ After reading the article, examine how slavery in the English colonies differed from

slavery in French and Spanish colonies (list two examples from the text).

b.) “Slave Societies vs Societies with Slaves:” How did the economic significance of slavery

differ from the New England Colonies vs the Colonies of Virginia and Georgia?

c.) “Regional Labor Experiences: Sugar & Tobacco” and the article “Rice in the Lowcountry:”

What differences existed between the working conditions of the enslaved growing sugar vs

tobacco vs rice?

d.) “American Indian Slavery in Carolina:” Summarize the enslavement of indigenous

peoples in the Colony of Carolina. What turmoil existed between the two groups?

3.) The Constitutional Convention Video:

a.) Provide the 5 W’s [who, what, when, where, why] of the US Constitutional Convention.

b.) What dilemmas did the writers of the constitution face regarding slavery?

c.) What compromises existed as a result?

4.) The US Constitution

a.) The Preamble: Summarize the preamble. What do the writers of the Constitution say

are the foundation American values?

b.) The Bill of Rights: This document was a part of the compromises to limit the power of

the Federal Government. Knowing this, consider the following:

o What freedoms are granted to American Citizens [which only included colonial

white men] in this document?

o Which of these amendments are being widely debated in political conversations

today? Insert one news article link that was published after the year 2000 to help

prove your point. (only pull news articles between the years 2000- current)

5.) Declaration of the Rights of Man – 1789

o List two examples of the Rights of Man that the document refers to. How can you see

these two examples resurface in political conversations today?

o How are these values and protections different from the values and punishments

that govern the enslaved? Choose one slave code and one example from this

document to cite as examples of the differences.

6.) An Act Concerning Slaves and Free Persons of Colour [North Carolina Slave Codes 1700-

1880

a.) Choose 3 laws from this document. Put the law into your own words; then, analyze how

the article shaped the life of the enslaved.

→ Use the organization below:

Law (Insert year here)

Summary: What does this article say in plain terms?

Analysis: What does it demand/prohibit/punish?

b.) Make one comparison and one contrast of the conditions of the enslaved under the Code

Noir in French colonies vs slaves under these laws in English colonies.

c.) Make one comparison and one contrast of the conditions of “Free” Blacks under the Code

Noir in French colonies vs slaves under these laws in English colonies.

d.) How does this NC Slave Code govern “free” Blacks? How similar are their conditions to

slavery? Cite one example from the document.