Silver, Resistance and the Evolution of Slavery in the West – w/ Andrés Reséndez

Teaching Hard History

Throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, the forced labor and bondage of Indigenous peoples was integral to the economic and political history of what became the Southwestern United States. Historian and author Andrés Reséndez outlines the significance of silver mining, Indigenous enslavement and resistance in the history of New Mexico and Latin America. We also examine how, as white settlers moved west, so-called “free soil” states like California continued to institutionalize coerced labor.

You can find a complete transcript in the show notes for this episode, along with a list of resources to help you teach the hard history explored in this episode.

And educators! Get a professional development certificate for listening to this episode—issued by Learning for Justice. Listen for the special code word, then visit learningforjustice.org/podcastpd.