The Uncomfortable Truth

True — but also misleading.

There are two types of slavery.

They are not the same.

If you’ve spent any time on social media, you’ve probably seen people in the comment section say,

“Slavery has always existed.”

It’s often dropped into conversation without much context—and usually doesn’t relate to the point the content creator is trying to make.

It’s often said because it sounds definitive. But it’s an Uncomfortable Truth that many people don’t want to think about, acknowledge, or even learn.
Others might simply not know much about world history—or ever stop to consider it.

So let’s look at what it actually means—factually—because it’s a connection worth making if you’re interested in understanding history or modern politics.

**From here the word slavery will refer to pre-colonization era slavery. **

The first written accounts of civilization come from the Mesopotamian region, located in what is now modern-day Iraq. The Code of Hammurabi, written around the 1770s BCE, included civil laws that identified slavery as a punishment for crime and debt.

“Slavery was a punishment for matters involving crime and debt.”

As time went on, so did acts of war. Rival tribal nations—and later, emerging nation-states—fought for resources, dominance, land, and wealth.
War brought with it another consequence: prisoners. These prisoners of war became a growing source of enslaved labour, serving not only practical needs but also political goals.

This was especially true in societies where kinship, clan, or ethnic identity played a central role in defining who was considered part of the group.

“These captives were often viewed as outsiders, which made their exploitation more socially acceptable within the group that enslaved them.“

In most cases, a person became enslaved as a result of punishment or retribution. While slavery wasn’t defined through legal codes the way it is today, it was reinforced through generations of accepted social practice.

It was commonly understood that enslaved individuals could be released once a significant repayment or condition was met. It was discretionary, yes—but not unusual.

It was also generally accepted that an enslaved person could marry, have children, and in some cases, even own land.

An enslaved spouse was not automatically considered a slave unless they were already enslaved prior to the marriage. Likewise, children born to an enslaved parent were not automatically considered slaves.

The punishment and treatment of enslaved people generally reflected what was considered “acceptable” by the standards of the time—much like the treatment of servants and laborers, which also followed the norms and expectations of their society.

Because it began as a punishment for crime, debt, or conquest, slavery was originally conditional—tied to circumstance. But over time, it evolved. What started as retribution became economic infrastructure. And after 1741, that evolution had taken its next step: chattel slavery—a global, capitalistic enterprise.