Development of the Labor Movement
Paper Assignment 1
“The beginning of European settlement of the Americas from 1492 was marked by an extensive demand for labor. As the assigned class readings and film documentaries show, the earliest forms of labor involved both coerced labor and forms of indentured servitude that utilized the work of Europeans, Native Americans and African peoples. By the late 1600s, this fluid labor arrangement became more restrictive and formalized, with a form of racially (African) based slavery imposed in North America. What factors contributed to this development? How and why did this transformation occur?”
Write a 5 page paper that addresses the question posed above. In your response, be sure to base your claims on materials read in the assigned readings (you do not need to read additional sources for this assignment.)
Drafts of the paper are due in class for the peer review session scheduled for Thursday September 21. Bring 2 hard copies of your paper to class that day, and send your draft to your assigned TA reader as an email attachment. You will be given additional feedback from the TAs assigned to work with you in the following week. The final draft of the paper is due Thursday October 16.
All papers should follow standard grammar, punctuation and citation methods. An in class exercise will provide an overview on proper citation.