Latin American History and Society - Essay Example

Hegemony and transculturation were majorly brought about by the colonization and importation of the slaves to provide labor in Latin America. European entry had both economic and political motivations, but also allowed cultural contact and exchange among Europe, Africa and America (Chasteen 6-118). Colonization by the European resulted to the enslavement of the natives to work for the Spaniards who provided all orders concerning the activities to be carried out. The main aim of the colonizers was to establish administrative dependency in which the local people were directly ruled.

They also imposed social-cultural, religious and linguistic structures on the conquered population. They believed that their morals and values were superior. All population under colony had to be converted to Christianity. All those who were opposed to these introductions of beliefs and religious practices faced severe penalties and death, to some extent. Also, their lands were taken and given to those who converted to Roman Catholicism. This mobilization of the natives was to create labor force that was used to meet production quotas.

Enslavement resulted to death of many since these were activities that they were not accustomed to. Spanish treatment of the indigenous population sparked fierce debates at their home regarding the issue of entailment of basic rights to mankind. This debate touched on religion being questioned, if those enslaved had souls (Chasteen 6-118). The enslavement of the Africans in the Spanish Americas started in 1502. This was after the abolition of the native enslavement. The monarchs gave permission to the colonist to import African slaves.

Most of the blacks were migrated to Europe by the transatlantic trade. Although some of the blacks born in Spain were not slaves they still were subjected to cruelty and hard labor. The replacement of the natives slave by the Africans was accepted by time the Spaniards. Later on the slaves escaped to various destinations, some ended up in Florida where they were granted freedom after they converted to Roman Catholicism. In those sections they went to, they were given protection by the governments therefore making it hard for their masters to retake them.

Settlement and protection of the slaves contributed to ending of the slavery. This resulted to linguistic and cultural links in the community they settled in. Acceptance of the Negros into the communities they ended up in constituted to sharing and mixing of various issues like marriages and creation of laws, that both protected the freed slaves and also the natives of the Latin America. Finally, the colonization helped to crease consciousness of an inter-dependent world community shared by everyone.

1b After European colonizing the Americans, they imposed all their morals and values to all those subjected under them. The Catholic Church and the Roman Empire ruled the Europe by the 1500. All the colonies of Europe therefore had to spread this religion to all the natives regardless of their beliefs. This was evidenced by the crusades spread in the colonies. This was referred to as the divine right of conquest. Considering the fact that the Islamic religion had widely spread, it made it difficult for other people to change to Catholicism since many were already Muslims.

The end result was the merging of the catholic monarchies in Spain and giving Catholic Church control power of religion