What was a sociopolitical result of shifting from indentured servitude to chattel slavery?

• A. It created a more egalitarian class system among whites.
• B. It eliminated racial distinctions in labor.
• C. It increased mobility for enslaved people.
• D. It became a racialized system anchored to blacks as the labor force, easing tensions among whites.

Answer: (D)

The main idea is how labor shifted from temporary, contract-based work to a fixed, race-based system. When indentured servitude gave way to chattel slavery, enslaved status became tied to race, so Black people were positioned as lifelong, hereditary property while whites remained free. This created a clear social and political hierarchy: a common privileged status for whites ahead of a legally defined, racialized labor force of Black enslaved people. By tying freedom and status to race, elites could more easily control labor and politics, and codify slavery into law, which helped maintain social order and suppress potential coalitions between whites and enslaved Africans. That’s why the correct idea is that it became a racialized system anchored to Blacks as the labor force, easing tensions among whites.