Systems of production within the Caribbean

OBJECTIVES

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Define systems of production.

2. List at least FOUR systems of production and give a concise explanation of each.

Systems of production may be defined as the ways in which an economy is organised to produce commodities to sustain society (Mohammed, 2007 p111). Early civilisations had very simple systems of production, such as hunting, fishing and gathering. However, as time progressed, these systems got more advanced with the advent of technology. Throughout this lesson, the systems of production that will be highlighted are:

1. Slash and burn

2. The encomienda system

3. Slavery

4. The plantation system

5. Indentureship

SLASH AND BURN

This system of production was first formulated by the Tainos and Mayans long before Columbus ever thought of reaching the Americas. It is quite evident that this legacy has been passed on to free Blacks and is still heavily utilised in contemporary times, as peasant farmers use this method to clear lands to provide natural fertilizers for plants and to get rid of pests. Even today, some sugar fields in the Innswood, St Catherine, vicinity use the slash-and-burn method to cultivate crops.

THE ENCOMIENDA SYSTEM

This system was from the 1520s to the 1720s. Britannia.com purports that this was a legal system by which the Spanish crown attempted to define the status of the Indian population in its American colonies. It was based upon the practice of exacting tribute from Muslims and Jews during the Reconquista (‘Reconquest’) of Muslim Spain. Although the original intent of the encomienda was to reduce the abuses of forced labour (repartimiento) employed shortly after the discovery of the New World, in practice it became a form of enslavement.

As legally defined in 1503, an encomienda (from encomendar, ‘to entrust’) consisted of a grant by the crown to a conquistador, soldier, official, or others of a specified number of Indians living in a particular area. The receiver of the grant, the encomendero, could exact tribute from the Indians in gold, in kind or in labour, and was required to protect them and instruct them in the Christian faith. The encomienda did not include a grant of land but, in practice, the encomenderos gained control of the Indians’ lands and failed to fulfil their obligations to the Indian population. The crown’s attempts to end the severe abuses of the system with the Laws of Burgos (1512-13) and the New Law of the Indies (1542) failed in the face of colonial opposition and, in fact, a revised form of the repartimiento system was revived after 1550.

The encomienda was designed to meet the needs of the colonies’ early mining economy. With the catastrophic decline in the Indian population and the replacement of mining activities by agriculture, the system lost its effectiveness and was gradually replaced by the hacienda system of landed estates. The encomienda was not officially abolished until the late 18th century.

Image retrieved from alamy.com highlighting the treatment of Amerindians by the Spaniards. This lucidly shows that the encomienda system was dichotomous to slavery.

This aspect has been dealt with during previous lessons, so I will be very succinct. Many of the white Europeans believed that “slavery was a necessary evil” (Kaminski, 1995). Slavery was a way to dehumanise Blacks and to satisfy the economic greed of the plantocracy. There were two types of slavery. These included:

Domestic slavery was predominant in West Africa among tribes fighting against each other or as a way of paying off a wage for a particular period of time. Chattel slavery, on the other hand, was prevalent in the Americas. Slaves were treated as property instead of human beings. Patricia Mohammed (2007) further highlighted that slavery was a form of total institution as it determined all aspects of the lives of the enslaves. Upon arrival to the Americas, the slaves were “seasoned” so that they could be easily controlled by their white masters.

THE PLANTATION SYSTEM

This system of production was devised by the Europeans as a way of garnering money for their coffers. It has been deemed as the longest existing system of production throughout the Caribbean region. Blacks were subjugated and they made up the labour force of the plantation. Monocropping/monoculture was at the nucleus of the plantation system as sugar was the main crop cultivated. Additionally, it could be argued that the plantation system was a closed society, whereby social status was static, especially for the Blacks. Today, many sociologists, anthropologists and historians argue that even though slavery has ended, there is still a plantation system existing in contemporary times. It is evident in certain communities and jobs that are heavily stratified.

*Due to the fact that indentureship was already covered in the previous lesson, this will not be covered this week.

I sincerely hope that you have got some enlightenment as it relates to this topic. Blessings to all.

PRACTICE QUESTION

Highlight three features of the plantation society and explain how this system of production is evident in contemporary times. (20 marks)

Nicole Baker teaches at Eltham High School. Send feedback to kerry-ann.hepburn@gleanerjm.com.