In Virginia during much of the early 17th century, the supply of English indentured servants was such that finding workers was not a problem. Many people in England were unemployed or underemployed and wanted the opportunity to come to the colonies. Indentured servants signed a contract to work for a certain amount of years in exchange for their passage to the colonies. After their contract ended, some indentured servants acquired their own land and servants.

As the demand for labor increased, especially for tobacco growing, planters began enslaving African people and holding them for life. English people were also less willing to come to Virginia as indentures. This began the system of slavery in Virginia. By the 1660s, there was a clear demand for African people and ships carrying enslaved people began to arrive in Virginia more frequently. From the 1660s through the 1680s, laws were passed by the Virginia General Assembly which further codified slavery in the colony. Codifying enslavement changed relationships between the English and African people. For example, one act passed by the General Assembly in 1667 stated that, “… the conferring of baptism doth not alter the condition of the person as to his bondage or freedome…” Thus, Virginia planters were able to rationalize enslaving African people as basic to the plantation economy and no longer felt obligated to try to Christianize enslaved people.

Another change occurring in the late 1670s had great implications for the African American culture, which gradually developed from its beginnings at Jamestown. Prior to this time, the enslaved African people had come to Virginia from the area we know today as Angola in West Central Africa. By the 1670s, Europeans were forcing people into enslavement from different parts of the African continent and the Caribbean. Many of these African people were from the Akan culture, an ancient group known for their gold working skills and rich spiritual tradition. This infusion of diverse African cultures set the stage for the emergence of today’s African American culture.