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To: gleeaikin
Roman slaves generally had more rights than American slaves.

Depends which period of Roman history you're talking about. In the early days, nobody except the pater familias had any legal rights whatsoever. He had power of life and death, quite literally, over slaves, wife, sons, daughters, daughters-in-law, etc. I believe he could even legally sell a son, which makes the distinction between slave and free subject to change at any moment.

Romans, until quite late, routinely executed their slaves freely. Augustus was particularly disgusted by a guy who fed them to his lampreys. It wasn't illegal, just kind of bad taste.

Romans openly used their slaves, male and female, for sexual purposes. They also routinely murdered their slaves' children.

OTOH, there was never anything resembling a racial component to Roman slavery, except that Romans viewed themselves as the master race over everybody.

Slaves in Rome gained more legal rights as time went by.

From early days, a freed Roman slave immediately became a Roman citizen and was then free to compete economically. Many became wealthy and powerful. His children were generally accepted socially.

All things considered, I'd rather have been a slave in Rome than Jamaica.

23 posted on 01/11/2010 7:57:45 AM PST by Sherman Logan ("The price of freedom is the toleration of imperfections." Thomas Sowell)
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To: Sherman Logan
All things considered, I'd rather have been a slave in Rome than Jamaica.

Unless you were sent to the mines. That was a death sentence.

25 posted on 01/12/2010 11:32:57 AM PST by colorado tanker
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