The Other Slavery: The Uncovered Story of Indian Enslavement in America

Reséndez focuses on Indigenous peoples’ involvement in the slaving enterprise in this chapter. From the beginning of European colonization, Indigenous peoples were involved in human trafficking. Initially, they offered the newcomers captives and helped them develop new slave trafficking networks. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Indigenous peoples “increased their power and came to control a larger share of the traffic in slaves” (172). There are three main reasons for this change. The first is that the Spanish campaign, which legally prohibited Indigenous slavery, dissuaded some Spanish slavers from continuing to participate in the enslavement of Indigenous peoples. Indigenous groups could fill this void since the Spanish crown had less control over them. The second reason is that the Indigenous rebellions of the 17th century, including the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, unintentionally opened new slaving grounds. These rebellions also resulted in some groups fusing together and reinventing themselves as mobile bands who traded goods (often captured during wars or raids) for a living, and these goods included horses and Indigenous captives. The final and most important factor is that some Indigenous groups had greater access to firearms and horses, enabling them to capture other Indigenous peoples more easily.

One of the most dramatic examples of an Indigenous group controlling the slave trade occurs in the American Southwest with the Comanches.